ALTHOUGH the prospect of owning a home in the capital can seem impossible to many young people, new figures suggest a number of east London boroughs are thriving markets for first-time buyers.

Walthamstow topped the list of areas where flats are sold to first-time buyers and Tottenham saw the most houses sold to first-time buyers.

The average price of a flat in Walthamstow is £334,086, a figure which has increased by seven per cent in the past year.

Last year estate agents predicted house prices in Waltham Forest would hike due to the introduction of the Night Tube.

The figures below, released by Hamptons International, suggest the number of people buying flats as their first home has decreased from 61 per cent to 40 per cent in the past eight years.

East London and West Essex Guardian Series:

David Fell, Research Analyst at Hamptons International says: “Last year 90% of new buyers in the capital bought their first home in outer London, up from 60% in 2009 and an all-time high.

“This shift to suburbia means more new buyers are ending up in a house rather than a flat. The proportion of houses sold to first time buyers has risen in every year since 2012.

“Under 30s make up most new purchasers of flats in zones two and three while those buying their first home a little later in life head for a house in the suburbs.”