It’s fair to say that many of us dream of one day being in the fortunate position of buying our own home. But with house deposits rising and a market that appears to only cater to the rich, it can sometimes feel near impossible – especially if you’re single.

With the news that it’ll take Londoners around 68 years to save for a deposit, finding someone else to buy with can seem like a very financially savvy idea. However, recent research shows that bunking up with someone just so you can call your home your own doesn’t have to be the only way. According to Zoopla, single buyers can get themselves on the market if they’re willing to buy outside of big cities.

By basing their research around the price of one-bedroom flats, they’ve found the most affordable areas for single buyers in England and Wales. And as it turns out, as a solo buyer, Newcastle-under-Lyme in Staffordshire, West Midlands, is the cheapest location. You’ll pay around 10% of your monthly wage toward your mortgage in this area – three times less than the average for England and Wales.

By comparison, Cambridge (a popular commuter city) isn’t the ideal option outside of London for single buyers. Not only is it the most expensive location outside of the Big Smoke for solo buyers, but you’ll need to set aside more than one third of your wage for monthly mortgage payments.

Close by Hertsmere in Hertfordshire isn’t too affordable either with monthly mortgage payments in at over a third of the average wage, along with Brighton (another popular commuter town) and Hove.

The most affordable areas to get on the property ladder in the UK - if you’re single