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FirstBuy to help 10,000 FTBs from September

Tuesday, 21 June 2011 3:14 PM

Housing Minister Grant Shapps today outlined further details of FirstBuy, the Government scheme aimed at helping first-time buyers to get on the property ladder.

First announced in March, the FirstBuy scheme is designed to help those struggling to buy their first home due to the need for large deposits.

Shapps has now confirmed that over 100 house-builders will take part in the scheme by offering their new-build homes to first-time buyers.

FirstBuy will see the Government and house-builders jointly offer a 20 per cent equity loan which, alongside a five per cent deposit from the buyer, will enable them to take out a 75 per cent mortgage.

Loans will be repaid on resale of the property, with the Government's share available for reinvestment in more affordable housing.

Shapps is hoping that FirstBuy will help 10,000 buyers in England over the next two years, with up to £500 million being available across the UK. The first homes are expected to come on stream in September this year.

Commenting on the scheme, Grenville Turner, chief executive of Countrywide, said: “We believe that this will give a much-needed boost to the first-time buyer market and also underpin the New Build/Developer market which has experienced difficulty over the last three years.

“However, in order to ensure that this initiative delivers, the government, developers and fellow mortgage and estate agency intermediaries will need to work together to advise buyers and ensure that they fully understand the benefits of this scheme."

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