Your First Home
The Government’s proposed Your First Home scheme aims to help eligible first-time buyers in England take the first step onto the property ladder, with a smaller deposit needed.
Helping eligible first-time buyers take their first step towards home ownership
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The Government’s proposed Your First Home scheme aims to help eligible first-time buyers in England take the first step onto the property ladder, with a smaller deposit needed.
Looking for a more affordable solution to getting on the property ladder? Your First Home is here.
With this new government scheme, you could buy a new build home with:
The scheme will be open for pre-registration by the end of 2026, with applications expected to open from February 2027.
The scheme is specifically for first-time buyers who have a regular income but don’t have the traditional large deposit to get started.
Here's how it could work on an eligible new build property worth £300,000:
For comparison, with a standard 95% mortage you would typically need a deposit of £15,000 and a repayment mortgage of £285,000.
You'll own your home from the start, and the equity loan will be interest-free for the first 5 years. After that, there'll be an interest rate of 1.5% for Year 6, and 3% from Year 7.
For more information about the equity loan and how repayment works, visit the Government website page.
Your First Home is a proposed Government-backed equity-loan scheme designed to help first-time buyers in England purchase a new-build home. Under the proposals, eligible buyers could put down a 2.5% deposit and access a Government-backed equity loan of up to 20% of the property's value, with a mortgage covering the remainder. The final scheme details are yet to be confirmed.
The scheme is intended for first-time buyers in England who have struggled to save a larger deposit. Eligible buyers outside of London must have a total annual household income of £110,000 or less, or £140,000 or less within London. More eligibility rules are expected before applications open.
The scheme can be used on eligible new build homes from developers such as Persimmon who are participating in the scheme. Property price caps will vary by location. For example, the price cap in Reading is £375,000, in North Devon it's £320,000, £355,000 in Manchester and £220,000 in Middlesborough. London price caps are higher, at £650,000 in Inner London and £500,000 in outer London.
Your First Home is not a discount scheme. Instead, the proposals involve a smaller deposit and a Government-backed equity loan. The existing First Homes scheme is different: eligible buyers can purchase qualifying properties at a discount of at least 30% against market value, subject to the scheme's rules.
The resale rules for the proposed Your First Home scheme have not yet been confirmed. The existing First Homes scheme has separate rules designed to pass the discount on to eligible future buyers. Check the official scheme guidance for the applicable restrictions before buying or selling a property.
The application process for the proposed Your First Home scheme has not yet been announced, but we know that the scheme will open for pre-registrations by the end of 2026.
