With house prices rising sharply in recent years, many young people have been blocked from the first rung on the property ladder.

But offering hope to first-time buyers everywhere, a woman has revealed how she saved £50,000 in less than two years to buy her first property.

Hilary Iyoha, 25, from South East London, works as an investment banking analyst and bought a three-bedroom house in Bexley earlier this year.

She is now sharing her tips on how she did it, so others can too.

“I’ve always been financially savvy,” Hilary told news agency Jam Press.

“I used to be that kid who would save up my weekly £10 lunch money at school if I wanted to buy something.”

Hilary’s key tips for saving are fairly straight-forward: cut out any unnecessary spending, use credit cards for cash-back and create a budget that works for your needs.

The savvy businesswoman put aside £2,000 per month – representing two-thirds of her salary – for almost two years.

Out of her outgoings, 24% went to general expenses.

However, it’s worth noting that Hilary was living with her family while saving, meaning she didn’t have rent or other bills to pay.

She said: “Two thousand pounds was a good part of my monthly income at the time, but during the pandemic where nothing was really open and I was working from home and living with family rent-free, with little to no financial responsibility, it wasn’t too hard.

“I think there is a very rigid narrative when it comes to budgeting.

“It’s not a one size fits all; the most important thing is doing what works for you.”

Aside from budgeting, Hilary shared few more specific tips on how others can save money – whether they live at home or not.

She said: “I would use my credit card to spend and then pay back the full balance in the following month, thereby avoiding any interest.

“Spending on my credit card also has benefits such as accumulating Avios points, which can be used to cover or reduce the cost of flights.

“I sold holiday days at work which increased my monthly income.”

The super saver believes in giving back too, having donated 10% of her monthly salary to charitable causes, including her local church.

She said: “Tithing is something I deem to be an essential and I take it seriously.

“I also found that giving tithes didn’t impede my ability to save…[it] actually motivated me to save and spend more consciously.”

Hilary began her search for a home in September 2021 and had put offers on three properties before she saw the one.

She fell in love with a three-bedroom, mid-terrace 1930s house in Bexley, which was close to her parents’ home and in good condition.

She got the keys in February 2022.

She said: “I was happy – I don’t think I fully registered that it was mine.

“I’m not always the most expressive person, but I was proud of myself.

“The time between your offer being accepted and when you get the keys can be quite long, so it’s easy to get disillusioned – but it’s worth it in the end.”

Having studied money banking and finance at university, Hilary already has a strong base of knowledge, but says that social media is a “game-changer” for building up financial literacy.

This has also inspired Hilary to share her own story and advice on her TikTok account and on Instagram.

Hilary said: “I am someone who has benefited – both in my career and property journey – from other people sharing, so I want to do the same for others and to try to add value.

“Not everything I say is applicable to everyone, as people’s circumstances vary, but the idea was that, in being transparent about how I [bought a property], it can potentially be of help to someone.

“I think it’s important to be open with money.

“I also think that representation matters – it’s good to see young, black females doing great things.”