An increasing number of first-time buyers are taking on mortgages without fully understanding the financial implications, a survey released yesterday by EBS Building Society showed.

While relatively high numbers of first-time buyers said they had "some understanding" of the mortgage process, the number of respondents who said that they understood the mortgage process "very well", fell to 29 per cent, from 36 per cent in 2004.

The survey, conducted by Millward Brown IMS, also showed that almost two-thirds of people surveyed said that buying a house was one of the most stressful things they had ever done - an increase of 5 per cent on 2004.

Responding to the results of the survey, EBS said it would hold 15 first-time buyer information seminars in September and October aimed at helping first-time buyers understand the implications of taking out a mortgage.

Dara Deering, head of EBS Mortgages, said it was a worry that so few applicants understood the ins and outs of what she described as a life-changing event. "As a responsible lender we believe that we have an obligation to do what we can to ensure that any future member is making fully informed decisions when they assume significant levels of debt through their first mortgage," she said.

EBS also said yesterday it would start offering a 100 per cent mortgage in response to repeated requests from members and applicants.

Applications will be reviewed on a case by case basis and will depend on the applicant's ability to pay, it said.

In deciding to offer 100 per cent mortgages, EBS is joining the four other lenders who in the past few months have followed in the footsteps of First Active in waiving the traditional requirement for an 8-10 per cent deposit when purchasing a home.

However, yesterday's survey, which questioned 200 people who had bought their first home in the last year, showed that 63 per cent had no difficulty raising the deposit.