The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) has revealed that nearly half of first-time buyers last year didn’t use the ‘bank of mum and dad’.

Its latest mortgage lending figures indicate that lending to first-time buyers showed significant growth during 2014. More than 300,000 buyers purchased their first home during the year, the largest number since 2007.

There was also a sharp increase in the ability of first-time buyers to access the market without family help for their deposit.

However, the CML acknowledges that its analysis is blurred by the significant numbers of borrowers using the various Help to Buy schemes. These assisted more than 50,000 first-time buyers into a home in 2014.

Another significant factor in the increasing number of first-time buyers able to enter the market without help is the improvement in the availability of loans at higher loan-to-value (LTV) ratios.

Furthermore, the CML said the improving trend in the number of unassisted first-time buyers continues to depend on wider market conditions. With increasing affordability pressures and the introduction of a new regulatory landscape, the prospects for further improvements in the ability of first-time buyers to enter the market may be more limited, unless there are significant improvements in household finances or further extensions of government support, it said.