The number of first-time buyers has hit a seven-year high, LSL has reported.

The parent company of Your Move and Reeds Rains says that in July there were 30,000 first-time buyer sales, a quarter more than the 24,100 of July last year and the highest number since August 2007.

David Brown, commercial director of LSL, said: “The first-time buyer market is still active, even as the wider property market is starting to show signs of cooling down.

“As the economic recovery gathers momentum, more buyers are finding themselves in a position where they can afford to own their own home.”

The LSL claims are in conflict with what the NAEA has said about first-time buyers. The NAEA claimed that buyers under the age of 30 represent just 3% of all transactions, an all-time low.

Separately, Halifax has also said that first-time buyer numbers are up – and by even more than LSL claims.

Halifax says first-time numbers are up by a third in the past year, and are finding it cheaper to buy than to rent: it says that as an average, buying is £1,300 a year cheaper than renting.

Average mortgage costs in June were £677 a month, whereas rent was £37 more at £734. The figures are for three-bedroom houses and are based on today’s low mortgage interest rates.

Should these rise in line with Bank of England base rate rises, the situation would reverse once the latter reached 1.5%, and renting would become cheaper than buying.

If base rates rose to 2.5%, the average first-time buyer’s mortgage would cost £897 per month – £110 more than if they were renting, says the Halifax.

This might, of course, be too simplistic, as landlords would also be hit with higher mortgage costs and would hike their rents.

But is there a feast or famine of first-time buyers? Is the NAEA right or wrong?

Eye would be very interested to know what is going on in your local area.