NEW research by housing charity Shelter shows it is 103 per cent harder for first time buyers in the South West to climb onto the property ladder than it was ten years ago.

The shocking report, by Shelter's Roof magazine, shows first time buyers in almost every English region face the most difficult struggle ever to secure their first home.

The annual Roof Affordability Index assesses housing affordability by comparing mortgage costs against household incomes. The latest figures show the gap between what people can afford and the cost of housing is growing.

Shelter chief executive Adam Sampson said: "These figures show the gulf between those who can afford to buy and those who can't is widening in the South West at an alarming rate. For first time buyers, the housing ladder is becoming a housing tightrope."

He warned: "Buying a home is becoming an ever-more distant dream for firsttime buyers and as housing becomes increasingly unaffordable, repossessions are likely to spiral and more families will face the nightmare of homelessness."

The index for the South West stands at 174.1, compared with 85.9 in 1996, meaning it is 103 per cent harder for first time buyers now than it was ten years previous, and the hardest it has been since 1994.

Average mortgage repayment costs for would-be first time buyers in the South West swallowed-up 23.5 per cent of the average household's income in 2006, compared to around 12 per cent in 1996. The average first time buyer property in the South West costs around £152,000 in 2006 compared to around £49,000 ten years ago. The average monthly mortgage repayment in the South West is around £789 against around £268 in 1996.

Mr Sampson said: "Spiralling house prices are forcing first time buyers into taking drastic measures to get onto the housing ladder, like signing up to lifetime mortgages at six or seven times their salary. It's no wonder mortgage arrears and repossession problems seen by Shelter have more than doubled in the last two years."