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First-time buyers have been deserting the mortgage market in droves in the last year, with lenders and the government coming under increasing pressure to help kick-start the stagnant purchase market. However, market research has shown it is not just the higher prices or availability of products that has driven those potential purchasers away.

But is the UK first-time buyer market more in the midst of a credit crisis or a crisis of confidence?

A study published by HSBC in August discovered while one in 10 Britons were keen to either move house or get on the housing ladder they had decided to hold off on their plans for at least the next six months.

However, just 2 per cent of those who had chosen to delay said they had experienced difficulty in getting a mortgage.

The research revealed the majority of people were holding out on purchasing a property because they believed it would be cheaper to buy in the coming months or they were concerned about the rising cost of living.

HSBC's research also showed of those opting to put their house buying plans on hold, nearly one quarter were first-time buyers.

James Thorpe, senior media relations manager for HSBC, said it was first-time buyers more so than any other type of buyer who had adopted a "wait and see" approach.

He said: "Clearly there are several reasons as to why first-time buyers are being put off, but our research suggests availability or flexibility of mortgages is less relevant to them than the concern that house prices will continue to fall or the overall affordability of property."

Darren Pescod, managing director of St Neots-based advisers The Mortgage Broker Limited, said he believed there were three clear reasons why first-time buyers were dropping out of the mortgage market - the lack of available deals, confidence in the market and ongoing talks about stamp duty.

He said: "First-time buyers are now being asked for bigger deposits then they were before. Quite simply if the borrower does not have the cash for the deposit and associated costs then they will not be buying property in this present market.

"If they have got the deposit money raised the next big question they will be asking themselves and whether this is the right time to buy."

Peter Sprung, chief executive of Leeds-based IFA Park Row Associates Limited, said while the biggest effect of the credit crunch had been the contraction of lending criteria, there were still many products in the market place and many lenders that were prepared to offer a loan at 95 per cent loan-to-value.

He said: "It is not wholly a lending issue and one has to consider why first-time buyers are staying away at this time. I suspect many still feel the market has not reached the bottom of the value cycle and that some bargains may be gained at a future date.

Stuart Bryce, managing director of Duffield-based intermediary Mortgageforce, said be believed much of the consumer media had worked to deliver a "continuous, self-perpetuating message of doom and gloom" among would-be homebuyers, backed up by a government that, until recently, had taken no decisive action on helping to re-invigorate the purchase market.

He said: "As for lenders, most have been like sheep quietly hiding among each other, shadowing each others criteria, too scared to stand out from the pack and waiting for this sad situation to go away."

So what can be done to aid this "wait and see" culture that has development among buyers taking an increasingly cautious approach to the market?

Mr Bryce said the lack of first-time buyers could not be attributed to lenders as many had been making a concerted effort to "keep the industry wheels turning".

Mr Pescod said he believed lenders were doing what they could for first-time buyers based on the current market climate.

But despite the fall in first-time buyer numbers, Park Row's Mr Sprung said the housing market would not stagnate for a great deal longer.

He said: "In order to facilitate many of these moves however, it is essential that first-time buyers are attracted into the housing market but this has become as much a government issue as it is one for lenders."