Burnham unveils 'Your First Home' scheme with 2.5% deposits for first-time buyers
Andy Burnham has announced a Help to Buy-style 'Your First Home' scheme offering first-time buyers in England a 20% equity loan with deposits from 2.5%.
Andy Burnham has unveiled a new Help to Buy-style housing scheme aimed at getting young people onto the property ladder, timed for the start of the Labour conference in Liverpool.
Under the “Your First Home” programme, first-time buyers in England will be able to buy a newly built home with a deposit of just 2.5% of the price, alongside a 20% equity loan that will initially be interest-free, The Times reported.
“Too many young people are struggling with the cost of housing, with many giving up hope of ever having a home to call their own,” Burnham said. “So we will step in to help more first-time buyers on to the housing ladder, especially those who can’t call on the Bank of Mum and Dad.”
With the average first-time home costing £230,000, according to Rightmove figures cited by The Times, a buyer could put down £5,750 and access a loan of up to £46,000. Only new-build properties will qualify, and household income caps, deposit caps and price caps will exclude high earners and expensive homes.
The scheme echoes the Help to Buy programme launched by George Osborne in 2013, which ran until 2023. Developers will contribute to running costs through a fee linked to property value. Burnham also plans to strengthen councils’ powers over long-term empty homes, cutting the period before a property can be taken over from two years to six months, UA.News reported citing The Guardian.
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