Communities Secretary Eric Pickles and Housing Minister Kris Hopkins said 112,000 families have been able to buy or reserve a home since 2010, using Right to Buy, shared ownership or Help to Buy initiatives.

In the first 10 months of the Help to Buy equity loan scheme, there were 25,247 reservations and 14,823 completed sales on new build properties.

Some 6,000 offers have also been made through the Help to Buy mortgage guarantee scheme, which is available for new build and existing properties.

The average price of a property bought under the scheme was £184,000 and 89% of completed sales were by first time buyers, accounting for 13,112 of total purchases.

Right to Buy, which was re-launched in April 2012, offers eligible tenants discounts of up to £75,000 off the value of their home, and up to £100,000 in London.

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A total of 2,845 properties were sold between October and December last year, a 42% increase on the same period in 2012, and bringing the total number of council homes sold under the reinvigorated Right to Buy to almost 14,000.

Pickles said: “We’re now seeing buyers returning to the market in droves, and new homes being built across the country. Both buying and building are at their highest levels since 2007, underpinned by our action to cut the deficit and keep interest rates low. But there’s still more to do, and improving the housing market will remain a vital part of our long-term economic plan.”