Help to Buy sales update
The latest statistics on the uptake of the Government’s flagship Help to Buy schemes were published on 15 December 2016. The figures show that over 220,000 homes have been bought since the schemes were first launched in October 2013. The portfolio of Help to Buy schemes include: ISA, Shared Ownership, Mortgage Guarantee, Equity Loan and London Help to Buy. The average house price across the schemes is £191,000
The average house price to income multiple under the mortgage guarantee scheme is capped at a 4.5x ratio to ensure responsible lending. The London Help to Buy scheme was launched in February 2016 and is helping London residents to buy a new home with a 5% deposit and a mortgage as low as 55% for first time buyers as well as homeowners looking to move to a newly built home with a price tag of up to £600,000. The London Help to Buy scheme has been used by 1,500 buyers in the first 9 months since the scheme was launched.
The Help to Buy: ISA scheme launched in December 2015. The scheme allows savers to claim a government bonus of 25% on monthly savings of up to £200 on savings towards their first home. The bonus translates to an extra £50 added to every £200 saved up to a maximum governmental contribution of £3,000 on £12,000 worth of savings.
The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Philip Hammond, said:
‘Our Help to Buy schemes are helping hundreds of thousands of people, especially first time buyers, achieve home ownership. We are continuing the popular Equity Loan and ISA schemes to ensure people can access support when buying or saving for a property. We are determined to help make home ownership a reality for hard working people.’
As previously announced, the Mortgage Guarantee Scheme will end on 31 December 2016 as a wide range of 95% mortgage products are now available from commercial lenders.