Fiona Levitt is trying to build a deposit to buy a flat in London. Without help from her parents and grandparents, she says she would struggle to get on the property ladder.

The 25-year-old is a secondary school teacher in Battersea, South London, earning £30,000 a year and renting a flat nearby with a friend. But even on this salary, and with savings of more than £13,000, buying a home on her own seems a distant dream.

Ms Levitt said: “I would love to be able to buy a two-bedroom flat somewhere in South London, preferably near work, for between £200,000 and £250,000. My parents have said that they will help me out with all the extras, such as stamp duty, and I am getting help from my grandmother towards the deposit.

“Help from parents seems to be the norm among my generation. I am at the age where many of my friends are buying, or thinking of buying, flats, and every one I know is getting help from their parents.”

Ms Levitt is worried that even with this financial assistance, she could still struggle to buy in London. A mortgage broker told her that the maximum she would be able to borrow on her salary was £135,000. This is well below the average price for a property in Greater London, according to Halifax, of £241,306.

Times Recommends

• Lies and cover-up at MG Rover exposed by report
• High oil prices push manufacturing costs up
• Primark founder steps down as chief executive