Increasing numbers of buyers are turning to offset mortgages, new figures have shown.

Between April 2006 and March 2007, the value of offset mortgages grew by 49 per cent, according to the latest statistics released by the Yorkshire Bank.

In comparison, other types of mortgages on the market grew by only 15 per cent.

The bank recently announced that four million UK homeowners could save a total of £29 billion in interest and income tax by switching their home loan to an offset product, which will combine their mortgages and savings accounts into one product.

Since being launched just six years ago, there are now around 250 offset mortgages available to borrowers, with the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) reporting that the majority of these are sold through brokers as many consumers continue to find them confusing.

The release of these new figures comes soon after the CML announced that 90 per cent of first-time buyers now take out fixed-rate mortgages, an from the 2006 figure of 83 per cent.