Bath, Wolverhampton and Chester are the best three cities in the country for first-time buyers, new findings suggest.
At the other end of the spectrum, London, Birmingham and Sheffield offer the worst deal for first-time buyers in terms of property prices, job prospects and disposable income.
In a marked turnaround in fortunes, the university city of Oxford has slipped from first to eighth place in the first-time buyer rankings amid a rise in contents thefts, while Sunderland has jumped up 10 places.
Finance matters: How buyers finance their homes, according to research by MoneySuperMarket