Single are likely to find it harder to get on the property ladder in Epping Forest than almost any other place in the country, according to a new study.

Research by property website Zoopla found singles trying to make it on their own in the district would see mortgage payments take up a third, or 33 per cent, of their monthly wages.

The research was based on analysing the prices of one-bed flats - the property type a buyer who was single may be looking for - across England and Wales.

It assumed that buyers would have a 15 per cent deposit to put down and would be paying off their mortgage over 25 years.

Results showed single buyers in Epping Forest would have to fork out the eighth most of any place in the country, excluding London.

Cambridge was identified as the least affordable area for single buyers, with mortgage payments there taking up 36 per cent of monthly wages.

Meanwhile, inside London, single buyers in Kensington and Chelsea would face a mortgage gobbling up 82 per cent of their monthly earnings.

Lawrence Hall, a spokesman for Zoopla, said: "Buying a property is a notoriously expensive process, and those looking to purchase a home on their own will likely feel the pressure all the more.”

Those looking to get on the property ladder could instead head to Newcastle-under-Lyme in Staffordshire, where a mortgage payment would only take up 10 per cent of a single buyer’s salary each month.