Homehunters in Wales are the keenest in Britain to become homeowners

First-time buyer activity also strong in Scotland and London

More adults in Wales aim to be homeowners in the next decade than in Great Britain overall, according to figures from Council of Mortgage Lenders and YouGov.

 Around 84 per cent of adults in Wales want to be home-owners compared to 79% in Great Britain. And in the shorter term, 47% of adults surveyed in Wales said they would like to buy a home in the next two to three years.

Loans to first-time buyers in the first three months of the year are up five per cent on the same period last year, and by six per cent in terms of value. First-time buyers accounted for 44 per cent of all house purchase loans in Wales, up from 41 per cent in the last three months of last year.

In London 75 per cent of adults currently living in the capital would like to own their own home within 10 years. First-time buyers in London continue to make up a larger proportion of house purchase loans - in the first three months of the year 54 per cent of loans were to first-time buyers compared to 44 per cent in the UK overall.

In the first three months of 2013, 4,500 loans were made to first-time buyers in Scotland., a 10 per cent increase on the same period in 2012.

"With most adults in Scotland still viewing home-ownership as their tenure of choice and with more high loan-to-value mortgages now available, conditions for borrowers looking to either buy or move home are continuing to improve," said Iain Malloch, chair of CML Scotland. "The announcement of a new-build shared equity scheme, the continuation of MI New Home and the launch of the Help to Buy scheme next year, should provide a further boost to the Scottish mortgage market."

Meanwhile, while the number of mortgages available is rising, MoneySupermarket reports that people are still suffering from high fees. Clare Francis, mortgage expert at MoneySupermarket said: "It's a great time for mortgage borrowers. Since the Bank of England's Funding for Lending Scheme launched last August, we have seen a significant increase in the number of new mortgage products on offer. In addition, two and five-year fixed rate deals are currently at an all-time low. However, the thing to watch out for is the set up costs. Some of the lowest rates have very high fees.

"It's very easy to be attracted by low headline rates when looking at mortgages, but you must also factor in the fees you'll be charged to take the mortgage out. Set-up costs can vary greatly between providers so taking the time to work out the total amount you have to repay over the term of the offer is essential."