People living in these locations have the best chance of saving a house deposit the fastest

With mortgage rates skyrocketing the dream of owning a home may feel like a distant dream for many. However, new data has revealed that your location could also be impacting how attainable this dream is too.

A new study by Cala Homes looked at the median weekly salary in over 130 UK towns and cities and worked out how long it would take a single person to save for a 10% deposit for the median house price in the same area. The data was based on a person saving just 10% of their salary, to account for bills, rising costs and other outgoings.

Just a wee wait for those looking to buy in Scotland

The data showed that those in bonnie Scotland have to save for the least amount of time, with the top 5 locations for the quickest deposit time being in this country in the UK. Aberdeen took the top spot, with a median detached house price of just £79,720 and a median weekly wage of £621.30, it would take a single person just 2.5 years on their own to save for a 10% deposit.

Dundee came in second with it taking 4.8 years and Edinburgh in close third taking residents 4.9 years to save 10% of the £163,920 median detached house price.

UK locations outside of Scotland that appeared in the top 10 included Belfast, which would take 5.2 years to save, Hartlepool which would be 7.9 years and Doncaster taking 8.4 years.

The UK locations where it is quickest to save for a detached house deposit

Rank	City/Town	Region	Median weekly pay	Median Detached House Price (Sep 2022)	Years to save 10% deposit
1	Aberdeen	Scotland	£621.30	£79,720	2.5
2	Dundee	Scotland	£566.00	£141,260	4.8
3	Edinburgh	Scotland	£646.50	£163,920	4.9
4	Stirling	Scotland	£618.10	£161,650	5.0
5	Falkirk	Scotland	£605.60	£162,340	5.2
6	Belfast	Northern Ireland	£573.40	£155,140	5.2
7	Glasgow	Scotland	£616.80	£183,270	5.7
8	Hartlepool	North East	£591.80	£242,000	7.9
9	Doncaster	Yorkshire Humber	£571.70	£250,000	8.4
10	Bolsover	East Midlands	£539.20	£240,000	8.6

These figures only show a single person's time to save, so those that are buying with someone else could cut this figure in half.

Nearly four DECADES to save for a deposit in the big smoke

It is likely of no surprise that the location with the longest time to save for a deposit was London. Despite having a median salary of £747.40 per week, it would take one person 37.5 years to save for the 10% deposit for a median detached house price of £1.49m.

In second and third place on the list of most expensive, and therefore are the slowest places to save for, due to their proximity to and excellent transport links to London, are Watford and Woking. It would take 26.6 years and 23.9 years to save respectively.

The UK locations where it is slowest to save for a detached house deposit

Rank	City/Town	Region	Average weekly pay	Median Detached House Price (Sep 2022)	Years to save 10% deposit
1	London	London	£747.40	£3,986	37.5
2	Watford	East	£631.60	£875,011	26.6
3	Woking	South East	£724.60	£900,000	23.9
4	Sevenoaks	South East	£709.70	£871,000	23.6
5	St Albans	East	£819.50	£1,000,000	23.5
6	Oxford	South East	£670.70	£815,000	23.4
7	Guildford	South East	£795.90	£880,000	21.3
8	Cambridge	East	£746.30	£805,000	20.7
9	Brentwood	East	£790.40	£852,000	20.7
10	Chichester	South East	£637.60	£675,000	20.4

Glenn Copper, Sales & Marketing Director for Cala Homes (North Home Counties) said: "Against the backdrop of a housing and cost of living crisis, Deposit Unlock could offer more people an opportunity to own a new home by giving them access to low-deposit mortgages. It could also help buyers to significantly reduce the time it takes to save for a new home, and it isn't just for first-time buyers, the scheme is open to home movers and those looking to return to the market following separation or divorce.

"If you are currently paying money towards your rent and you would prefer to pay this towards buying a new home, then it could be worth exploring what Deposit Unlock could do to make buying a new home more affordable for you."