According to new research from the Co-Operative bank and Places for People, it seems as though first time buyers are eventually starting to become more realistic and sensible about the amount of deposit they require and also the maximum amount of mortgage or homeowner loan in which they can afford.

The survey, which was carried out on 1500 potential first time buyers, showed that most individuals who are looking to buy their first home expect it to be two years before they can seriously think about applying for a homeowner loan and that, on average, they will need to save up a deposit of £19,100, due to the lack of high loan to value mortgage products in the market place.

Attitudes amongst first time buyers have changed significantly since the start of the credit crunch. Only nine per cent of those interviewed said that they were not prepared to make any financial sacrifices, such as cancelling holidays and stopping going out, in order to be able to buy a house, this figure was up at 57 per cent at the same time last year.

Almost half of those looking to buy have also lowered the price range of properties they are considering, due to the long term affordability of the mortgage loan and many are prepared to sacrifice an additional bathroom, or bedroom, or buy a smaller house to be able to get onto the property ladder.

This is a welcome change amongst first time buyers, who seem at last to be lowering their expectations and taking a far more sensible approach to borrowing on a homeowner loan or mortgage.

This attitude will serve them well in their financial future and also help the housing and mortgage loan markets recover over the longer term and hopefully assist in avoiding a repeat of the current financial mess which both the industry and many individuals with loans they can no longer afford, find themselves in.