Of course you could always try "rent to own" whereby you rent a property having agreed a price to buy it in the future, usually about 2 years. You overpay your rent, which accumulates more of a deposit, having put down a deposit which is typically smaller than that required to buy, but more than is usual when renting. Even in today's market, for the reasons you have described so well above, your property will have appreciated in value, allowing you to get a mortgage of say 90% of the new value. With your deposit paid, and your overpayments, you will have gone a long way towards accumulating the other 10%, and sometimes you can even put money in your pocket, after covering your costs!
