Help to buy

The Help to Buy: Equity Loan was a Government scheme for first-time buyers first introduced in 2013. The scheme allowed first-time buyers to buy a new build home with a deposit of just 5%.

The scheme closed to new applications at the end of October 2022. Any existing reservations and purchases must be legally complete by 31st March 2023.

If you can’t quite afford the mortgage on 100% of a home, Help to Buy: Shared Ownership offers you the chance to buy a share of your home (between 25% and 75% of the home’s value) and pay a monthly rent on the remaining share. 

You could buy a home through Help to Buy: Shared Ownership in England if:

• your household earns £80,000 a year or less outside London, or your household earns £90,000 a year or less in London
• you are a first-time buyer, you used to own a home but can’t afford to buy one now or are an existing shared owner looking to move.

The government backed Mortgage Guarantee scheme is designed to help buyers with a 5% deposit buy a home. It was launched to increase the availability of 95% LTV mortgages, as the government will partially compensate the lender if a homeowner fails to pay their mortgage. Mortgages offered under the scheme must be repayment mortgages. The scheme runs until December 2022.

A 95% Loan to Value mortgage is a secured loan that covers 95% of a property’s value. You’ll need to provide a deposit for the remaining 5%. They can be good for those who may struggle with a higher deposit such as first time buyers, however typically come with higher interest rates.

The government website Own your Home provides further details and guidance on which scheme might be the best to help you own your home.