There have been reports in The Times newspaper that the Prime Minster, Rishi Sunak is considering bringing back support for first time buyers.
The conservatives want a headline policy in place before the next general election to help counter Labours pledge to help first time buyers and to increase the number of new homes built to over 300,000 per year.
One of the proposals being considered by the government is to resurrect Help to Buy, which recently ended. It was brought in by George Osborne in 2013 to provide government loans of up to 40% of a purchase price of a new build property. Buyers would pay interest on the loan after 5 years and were required to save only a 5% deposit. The scheme proved successful with over 375,000 loans being issued in the past 10 years with a total value of £23.5 billion.
There were criticisms of the scheme. It helped push up the price of new build homes artificially which increased the profits of house builders and left buyers at an increased risk of negative equity.
To counter these a source in the government suggested the scheme could be extended to all homes and not just new homes.
James Raspin, Chief Surveying Officer at Survey Hut comments –
“The affordability of homes in the UK for first time buyers is at an all time low. Successive governments have not put in place the structure for enough new homes to built and for people to easily move up and down the property ladder.
Help to Buy had its failings, but it did allow many people to buy their first home and get on the property ladder. A return of something similar could help thousands of people save £10,000’s needed for a deposit and would undoubtedly be a good thing.
The government should also look at all the other levers that affect the housing market, such as simplifying the planning process so more homes can be built, help downsizers move to free up housing stock by reducing or scrapping stamp duty, supporting 95% mortgages for first time buyers, encourage factory built homes to speed up the construction time and boost the number of construction workers to help build the homes.
If you’re a first time buyer looking for a survey get in contact with us. We’re happy to discuss the property you’re buying and advise on what we think is the most appropriate survey.
