New mortgage applicants are younger than those applying for home loans in previous years, according to data from Clydesdale and Yorkshire Bank.
Of the 35,000 mortgage applications received by the lender in the last 12 months, the most common age bracket has fallen from 41 - 45 to 36 - 40.
In the last 12 months, 36 to 40-year-olds have made up 17% of applicants compared to 16% of those aged 41 to 45 and 14% of those aged 45 to 50.
Five years ago, the bank found that those in their 40s were most likely to apply for a mortgage, suggesting borrowers are getting on the property ladder at a younger age.
The data also revealed that a third of first-time buyer applicants were in the 26 to 30 age bracket and more than a fifth were aged 21 to 25.
Caroline Graham, head of mortgages at Clydesdale and Yorkshire Banks, believes the change in demographic could be attributed to the rise in rental prices and the recent low interest rate environment.
She said: “The financial issues with renting have been well documented and so people are being urged to save for a deposit in order to get onto the property ladder as early as possible.
“We have also been in a prolonged environment of historically low interest rates and even as the base rate starts to rise many monthly mortgage repayments cost less than rent so consumers are better off.”
Further research carried out by the bank found that 75% of the UK population were worried about money - something Ms Graham attributes to the cost of renting.
She added: “With high rental costs causing financial strain to many, it’s positive to see the age of customers applying for a mortgage is decreasing.
However, although these findings appear positive, a study from Nationwide earlier this year found that first-time buyers are having to put money aside for eight years in order to save a deposit.