In the aftermath of the 2026 Budget, our property experts have shared their take on proposals to introduce a ‘Your First Home’ scheme, talking about what this could mean for first-time buyers – and any challenges the scheme could present for developers in practice.
The background: What is the ‘Your First Home’ scheme?
As part of the 2026 Autumn Budget, Chancellor John Healey announced a raft of measures aimed at making it easier for first-time buyers to get onto the property ladder.
Alongside the proposed introduction of a new First Time Buyer ISA (aimed at eliminating some of the limitations of the current LISA mechanism) from April 2029, a new scheme, dubbed ‘Your First Home’, could be implemented as early as February 2027.
Under the scheme, the minimum deposit for first-time buyers purchasing an eligible new-build property from participating developers in England would reduce to 2.5% – with the government also offering interest-free equity loans of 20% of the property price for a five-year period.
The breakdown: What the ‘Your First Home Scheme’ could mean for buyers and developers
In the aftermath of the announcement, we sat down with Residential Property expert Chris Brierly, Planning specialist Ollie Clawson, and Commercial Real Estate Experts Jim Garton and Jonathan Cavell to get their thoughts on the proposals.
Chris Brierley, Partner:
‘Overall, I think the Your First Home scheme looks good. There’s a lot of potential to help the bottom of the market pick up some pace, and to get new buyers interested in buying their first home.
‘Every residential property chain needs to have someone coming into the bottom of that chain buying their first house, so I think any scheme that helps that is a good thing for the industry as a whole.
‘It will need two things to work well: the scheme relies on a very small deposit, so lenders will need to offer products that suit that; communication from whoever is running this on behalf of the government will also be absolutely crucial.’
Ollie Clawson, Senior Associate:
‘Whilst I certainly think there’s a lot to be commended about the announcement of the Your First Home scheme, I’m not personally convinced that it will do a great deal to increase the rate at which new homes are being built.
‘There already seems to be a steady demand for new homes (particularly smaller properties), and whilst you expect that to increase as a result of this announcement, it won’t negate a lot of the challenges developers are facing in securing consent for those homes in the first place.
‘Once consent is issued, developers are often faced with significant developer contributions which, during periods of economic uncertainty, can then lead to viability issues, which can grind sites to a halt.
‘We’ll have to see what additional impetus this can bring to potentially give developers a bit more certainty during those harder stages of delivery.’
Jonathan Cavell, Partner:
‘While the scheme should provide a boost to demand, which can only be good news, planning constraints, viability pressures and the cost of development are going to be fundamental barriers to increase housing supply.
‘Developers are facing substantially higher construction, regulatory and infrastructure now than when Help to Buy (HTB) was introduced. Costs have increased by an average of £76,000 per plot since 2020, meaning demand-side support alone is unlikely to unlock housing delivery at the scale government hopes.
‘The scheme will no doubt help some first-time buyers, but affordability is still a big challenge. If the average UK house price is around £273,000, and average household incomes remain at £39,000 and lenders are generally offering around 4.5 times earnings, a 20% equity loan may still not be enough to bridge the gap for many buyers.
‘The market’s initial reaction also suggests some had been hoping for a larger package of support and an earlier start date. The proposed £4.7 billion for the scheme from the government is only around 20% of the sum committed to HTB, so it’s difficult to see how it could replicate the scale of impact that programme achieved.’
Jim Garton, Partner:
‘It’s a step in the right direction, but I don’t think it’s enough on its own to kickstart the housing market.
‘The devil is in the detail. We still don’t know what the take-up will be from developers, who will need to register for the scheme and pay to participate by December, and we don’t know how many buyers will ultimately qualify.
‘The regional price caps also mean the scheme’s impact is likely to vary significantly across the country, and I do think they’re quite low area-to-area. While they’re intended to improve affordability, developers are still contending with rising land, planning, finance and construction costs, so the economics need to stack up for developers if the scheme is going to drive a meaningful increase in supply.
‘Measures that reduce the cost of moving, such as Stamp Duty reform, a temporary Stamp Duty holiday, or a broader support package more akin to the original Help to Buy scheme could have a more immediate impact on market activity and greater influence on buyer confidence, which is what’s needed to move the market.’
FAQs on the Your First Home Scheme
When will the Your First Home scheme be introduced?
The implementation timeline for the Your First Home Scheme is yet to be confirmed by the government, but the registration window for new-build developers interested in participating in the scheme is currently expected to open from December 2026, while eligible first-time buyers could be able to apply for the scheme as early as 2027.
Who could qualify for the Your First Home scheme?
The Your First Home scheme is aimed at first-time buyers who are purchasing an eligible new-build property in England.
It will be open to purchasers with an annual income of under £110,000 (or £140,000 for those buying a property in London).
You can read the eligibility criteria published by the government so far in full on GOV.UK.
What properties will be eligible for the Your First Home scheme?
The Your First Home scheme will apply to new-build properties in England which are being sold by developers registered with the scheme.
The property price must also not exceed the price caps set by the government, which are expected to vary between local authorities.
The government has not yet published the full list of local authority price caps, but examples it has shared so far include caps of £375,000 for Reading, £355,000 for Manchester, £320,000 for North Devon, and £220,000 for Middlesborough.
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INSIGHTS DISCLAIMER
Please be advised that this is an update which we think may be of general interest to our wider client base. The insights are not intended to be exhaustive or targeted at specific sectors as such, and whilst we naturally take every care in putting our articles together, they should not be considered a substitute for obtaining proper legal advice on key issues which your business may face.
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