FIRST-TIME buyers in Suffolk faced a fresh blow today after it emerged the county's average house price is more than eight times the normal wage.The average cost for a property in Suffolk has increased to more than £200,000 - bucking the national trend of stalling prices.

FIRST-TIME buyers in Suffolk faced a fresh blow today after it emerged the county's average house price is more than eight times the normal wage.

The average cost for a property in Suffolk has increased to more than £200,000 - bucking the national trend of stalling prices.

While this is good news for home owners it paints another bleak picture for those trying to get themselves on to the property ladder.

The figures show the average price for a house in the second quarter of this financial year - between July and September - was £200,250.

This is 8.06 times the typical wage and a 2pc rise on the previous quarter, between April and June, when the average price was £195,687.

It comes at a time when the national housing market is thought to be slowing but Suffolk appears to be bucking the trend - with areas such as Suffolk Coastal and St Edmundsbury proving particularly popular.

Wil Gibson, chief executive of Suffolk Acre, a charity which aims to preserve community and rural life in the county, said: “I know a number of people in what are generally considered to be well paid jobs and they can't afford to get on to the housing ladder. If they're struggling imagine what its like for those at the lower end of the scale - everyone should be entitled to a decent house.”