by Jess Banham

First-time buyers are failing to scale the property ladder in Kent - or even make it to the first rung.

New statistics from building society Halifax reveal 76 per cent of prospective home owners believe they have no chance of ever buying a house.

That's more than anywhere else in the UK.

Figures also show only four per cent of what has been dubbed "Generation Rent" are bothering to make sacrifices so they can save for a deposit.

It comes as house prices in Kent also increase.

Buying a home in the county will now set you back on average £237,352 with Sevenoaks the priciest place to go house hunting.

Steven Noakes is a mortgage expert and specialises in helping first-time buyers.

He said: "There are definitely regions where we have seen an increase in house prices and clearly that is increasing the challenges for first time buyers, as it means the level of deposit that's required continues to increase.

"The second thing is some nervousness and concerns about the application process itself and fear of rejection.

"But if they are one of the twenty percent of people that get declined for a mortgage, we'll be very clear to them in terms of what the reasons for that decline are and how they can correct that situation to hopefully become successful in the future."

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