The average price paid for properties purchased under the various affordable housing schemes in Britain is £189,786, according to latest research from the Halifax.

This is just 4% (£7,750) lower than the £197,535 average for house purchases.

Regionally, the highest average price paid by purchasers using affordable housing schemes is in London (£323,148) while the lowest is in the North (£147,437). Nevertheless, the average value of a London property sold in a scheme is 33% lower than the average London regional price (£482,579).

First-time buyers remain the biggest beneficiaries of Help to Buy housing schemes; accounting for 80% of purchases over the last year. This is significantly higher than the 46% of all mortgage financed home purchases made by first-time buyers over the same period.

In the last year, improving economic conditions and government schemes such as Help to Buy saw the highest number of first-time buyers purchase their first home for seven years. The latest official figures reveal that Help to Buy equity loans and mortgage guarantee schemes and NewBuy have helped 99,601 buyers acquire a home since the introduction of Help to Buy in the 2013 Budget. Four out five (or 79,680) of these purchases were completed by first-time buyers.

The average price paid by first-time buyers using the schemes is now £150,361; this is 10% (£16,732) lower than the average price paid by first-time buyers (£167,093) for all housing. First-time buyers in London see the largest benefits from buying through affordable housing schemes, with an average price that is 36% lower than the average price paid by first-time buyers in the capital generally (£236,733 vs. £367,961).

Craig McKinlay, mortgages director at Halifax, said: “Many of the affordable home ownership schemes available have been designed specifically to help first-time buyers get on the ladder and support construction of new build homes.

“The latest official figures show this has been successful, as Help to Buy and Help to Buy NewBuy schemes have helped close to 80,000 first-time buyers on to the housing ladder since Help to Buy’s introduction in 2013. As the economy continues to recover and mortgage interest rates remain at very low levels. We expect to see continued growth in first-time buyers during the second half of the year.”