Over a million 18-24-year-olds have returned to the family home or stalled plans to move out to save money, research shows.

Lender Abbey found around 20 per cent of British 18 to 24-year-olds are heading back home to save up for a deposit, dubbing the group ‘Baby Boomerangers’.

Peter Bolton King, chief executive of the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA), said: “The reality for many first time buyers in Britain today is that the only bank that will help with a deposit is the Bank of Mum and Dad.”

Abbey’s survey also identified 440,000 Boomerangers amongst 25-34 year olds and a further 471,000 amongst 35 to 44-year-olds – totalling some two million Boomerangers nationally.

Boomerangers are predominantly northern, with 33 per cent heralding from the north of England, followed by the south-east with 22 per cent.

Nici Audhlam-Gardiner, director of Abbey Mortgages, said: “Millions of Britons have realised that sometimes you have to take one step backwards in order to go two steps forward.

“So while returning home or delaying your plans to move out might feel like a sacrifice, it’s actually a great opportunity to save enough money to put down a deposit on a property of your own.

“This is especially important in the current market where the bigger deposit, the better the mortgage rate you will be eligible for.”

Many banks are only offering the best rates on high loan-to-value mortgages. Abbey has introduced a fee-free mortgage at 4.49 per cent up to 75 per cent loan-to-value, although the bank said it also has “competitive deals” at 85 per cent loan to value too.