First-time buyers are still looking for good mortgage deals to help them enter the property market despite recent volatility on world financial markets, it has been claimed.

According to finance website Fairinvestment.co.uk, the overall number of people making inquiries about mortgages has dropped this year but first-time buyers are making up an increasing proportion of those that are looking for more information.

During the first three months of the year, they accounted for 56 per cent of mortgage inquiries, with this figure rising to 74 per cent between August and October.

James Caldwell, the director of Fairinvestment.co.uk, said: "Britain''s love affair with the property market is far from over, despite the recent dip and the gloomy forecasts for the next few years.

"Our figures suggest that while overall there have been fewer mortgage enquires since the first quarter of 2007, first-time buyers are still keen to seek out a deal and are fully prepared to opt for 100 per cent mortgages if it means getting their own home."

Last month, the Council of Mortgage Lenders said that the typical first-time buyer is borrowing 3.38 times their income in order to buy a property.