Help to Buy helps 2,000 buy a new home in Merseyside
'HELP to Buy', the government's flagship
housing scheme, has helped 2,261 people in Merseyside buy a new home since it
was created, new figures have revealed.
Since the launch of the Help to Buy equity loan and mortgage guarantee schemes:-
► 80% of scheme completions have been made by 1st time buyers.
► The average house price has been £185,000, significantly below the national
average.
► Over 80,000 people have bought a home through the scheme, including over 11,000
in the North West.
► 94% of Help to Buy completions take place outside of London.
► Over ½ of Help to Buy completions have been for new build homes.
► All part of the government's long term economic plan to help hardworking people
get the keys to their own home.
Did you know that:- 'Help to Buy' was created in 2013 to support hard working taxpayers who could pay
a mortgage, but couldn't afford the high deposits demanded by lenders in the
wake of the financial crisis.
Together with the government's 'Help to Buy - NewBuy' scheme; which offers 95%
mortgages for those buying new build properties, the number of new home owners
has reached almost ninety thousand.
The scheme also continues to benefit first time buyers overwhelmingly, with the
vast majority of sales outside of London and at prices well below the national
average.
Help to Buy is also ensuring the long-term health of the housing market by
increasing housing supply, stimulating home building. Over half of the homes
bought through Help to Buy are new-build properties, helping to contribute to
the 37% rise in private house building since the launch of Help to Buy.
First time buyers
As the latest statistics show, 'Help to Buy' is helping people who need it most, with
66,661 households having bought their 1st home thanks to the scheme.
This is 80% of overall 'Help to Buy' buyers, demonstrating that the scheme is
successfully targeting those who need help getting on the housing ladder,
despite only accounting for a small proportion of the mortgage market (3% for
both mortgage guarantee and equity loan).
Helping people across the UK
'Help to Buy' is helping people throughout the UK achieve their dream of owning a
new or bigger home.
With almost all completions outside London, the highest number of homes have
been through the mortgage guarantee scheme in the North West region. The equity
loan; a scheme for new build properties; is particularly high in the South
East region.
Figures for the mortgage guarantee scheme also show completions have been least
concentrated in regions where house price growth is highest. In London the
scheme makes up just 1.3% of all mortgage lending compared to an average of 3%
across the country.
Getting Britain building
'Help to Buy' is also supporting the country's economy by getting Britain building
again. Over ½ of homes bought under the scheme were new-build properties,
contributing to the sharpest rise in house building orders since 2003.
And it has incentivised growth in the construction industry; which has now been
growing for 21 consecutive months. Last year housing starts increased by 10%,
and they up more than 80% under this government. Both annual housing starts and
planning approvals are at a seven year high, with 537,000 new homes being built
during this parliament.
Responsible lending
'Help to Buy' was designed to support responsible lending, and the Bank of England
made it clear in October that the scheme is:- "not a material driver of
house price growth."
This is demonstrated by the figures: the average house price for both parts of
the scheme, at £185,000 (£156,000 for the mortgage guarantee and £212,000 for
the equity loan scheme), remains significantly below the national average house
price of £272,000.
The average house price to income multiple under the mortgage guarantee scheme
is just over 3.5x salary, and capped at a 4.5x ratio to ensure responsible
lending.
The Prime Minister David Cameron said:- "Thanks to Help to Buy, this
government has helped thousands of hardworking people that otherwise would have
been locked out of home ownership get the keys to their own home and enjoy the
security that comes with it.
This is all part of our long term economic plan to secure a better future for
Britain; and, together with cutting Income Tax, lowering Council Tax bills and
freezing fuel duty, the government is backing those who work hard and get on
find the financial security they deserve."
Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne said:- "It's great news that
the government's Help to Buy scheme has now helped almost 90,000 people across
the country achieve their dream of buying a new or bigger home.
We've only been able to help thousands of people in the UK because our long term
economic plan is working: through schemes like Help to Buy we're supporting hard
working taxpayers buy their own home, driving an increase in house building in
Britain, ensuring long term housing supply and creating jobs."
Home Builders Federation Executive Chairman Stewart Baseley said:- "Help
to Buy has helped tens of thousands of people onto the housing ladder who
otherwise would have struggled to meet their ambition of home ownership. First
time buyers in particular are taking advantage and the scheme is helping people
in every part of the country. The resultant rise in demand is allowing builders
to increase much needed house building levels. This is turn is creating tens of
thousands of jobs and boosting local economies the length and breadth of the
country."
Communities Secretary Eric Pickles said:- "The 2008 housing crash locked
thousands of people out of the housing market, leaving them unable to fulfil
their dream of owning their own home.
That's why the Help to Buy scheme is a key part of our long term economic plan,
helping over 88,000 hard working households onto the property ladder with a
fraction of the deposit they would normally require, while at the same time
boosting house building. This, and our new Starter Homes initiative offering a
20% discount on newly built homes for first-time buyers, will continue to offer
a strong alternative to the Bank of Mum and Dad."
Chief Secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander said:- "Help to Buy has
now helped almost 90,000 thousand homebuyers across the UK buy a new of bigger
home as part of this government's drive to create a fairer society. We have been
able to introduce this scheme; which is just one of the many ways that we're
helping people across the UK; because we've got the public finances and economy
on a stronger footing, as the fastest growing economy in the G7."
