The new London Help to Buy scheme has now opened its doors – allowing Londoners to buy a home with just a 5% deposit and a mortgage as low as 55%, the Communities Secretary Greg Clark has announced.
First-time buyers and second-steppers can now get the opportunity to own a new-build home in the capital with a deposit backed by a 40% equity loan from the government that is interest free for the first 5 years.
London Help to Buy is an extension of the successful Help to Buy scheme that has helped 130,000 people across the country since 2013.
Under the current scheme loans of up to 20% of the property’s price are made available to first-time buyers and home movers on new build homes worth up to £600,000. In London the loans will now be doubled to up to 40%.
Chancellor George Osborne said: "This government is determined to help more people realise the dream of owning their own home.
"Our Help to Buy scheme has already helped tens of thousands get a step onto the housing ladder, and the Help to Buy Isa means many more will get a top up from the government as they save for a deposit.
"(This) new scheme means an even better deal in the capital, where buying a home remains out of reach for too many.
"And to ensure there are more homes to buy for people across the country, in my Spending Review I set out plans to deliver the biggest affordable housebuilding programme since the 1970s."
Communities Secretary Greg Clark said: "We’re determined to make home ownership a realistic aspiration for hard-working young people, wherever they are in the country.
"Our multi-billion pound investment will open the door to thousands of Londoners wanting to own their own home, following in the footsteps of nearly 270,000 people who have already bought through government-backed schemes.
"And now with the improved Help to Buy scheme launching in London, I would urge anyone who thinks home ownership is out of reach to look again at the help on offer."
Housing Minister Brandon Lewis said: "Help to Buy has now helped over 130,000 people across the country achieve their aspiration of buying a new or bigger home.
"The scheme is helping people turn those dreams into a reality, with a fraction of a deposit they would normally require, and from today the new London scheme will help even more people follow in their footsteps.
"Anyone thinking about home ownership and those who believe it is out of reach should look again at the range of government schemes available to them."
Aldermore, Bank of Scotland, Barclays, Halifax, Leeds, Lloyds, Nationwide, Natwest, Royal Bank of Scotland and Teachers Building Societies are offering London Help to Buy from today – enabling Londoners to get on the housing market with a much smaller mortgage.
Help to Buy: Equity loan has been extended to 2021 with a further £8.6 billion; aiming to help up to 145,000 more people take steps towards owning their own home.
Since 2010 the government has helped more than 270,000 into home ownership thanks to the introduction of government schemes including Right to Buy and Help to Buy.
