Halifax, now part of Lloyds Banking Group, has said that low pay rises, higher taxes and inflation were all combining to constrain demand from home buyers despite prices rising slightly in June.
The average home rose by 1.2% in June compared to May but was 3.5% down than a year ago. Halifax say the average home cost is now £163,049.
Halifax figures showed that the typical mortgage payments for a new borrower have fallen from a peak of 48% of average disposable income in mid-2007 to 28% in the second quarter of 2011,
Halifax figures showed. The data is based on Halifax's own lending.
Last week, Nationwide said house prices in the UK had "moved sideways" in the past six months, and recent figures have suggested that mortgage lending remains subdued.
The Land Registry data said that prices in England and Wales dropped by 0.4% in May, to push them 2.2% lower than a year earlier.
However, it said that prices in London were bucking the trend. The data lags behind other surveys but is relatively more comprehensive.