London Help To Buy Scheme
You can no longer apply for a Help to Buy: Equity Loan for properties in England. There are however a number of other ways to get support with stepping onto the property ladder which we explore below.
Changes to Help To Buy: Equity Loan
The Help to Buy: Equity Loan was a Government scheme for first-time buyers first introduced in 2013. The scheme allowed first-time buyers to buy a new build home with a deposit of just 5% and would loan the prospective homeowner up to 20% (40% in London) of the full purchase price, interest-free for the first 5 years.
Help to Buy closed for new applications in October 2022 and officially ended in March 2023, with the gap between dates aimed to give purchasers with an existing application time to complete their buying process.
Although Help to Buy is no longer available to first-time buyers, there are a number of other alternative home-buying schemes available including Shared Ownership and London Living Rent.
Use our guide to see which home-buying product is right for you.
Which home buying option is right for me?
Shared Ownership - Alternative to Help to Buy
A great alternative to Help to Buy is Shared Ownership, a government-backed part-buy, part-rent scheme that gives buyers the opportunity to purchase a percentage share of a home.
Shared Ownership allows you to purchase a share of between 25–75% of a home and pay a below-market rent on the remaining share.
When the time is right for you, you’ll be able to purchase additional shares (known as staircasing) all the way up to 100%.
As you are only buying a share of the home, the deposit you need for your mortgage can be a lot smaller than buying on the open market making it easier for first-time buyers.
Guide to Shared Ownership
London Living Rent - Alternative to Help to Buy
London Living Rent is a government-backed scheme that enables Londoners to rent a home at a discounted rate comparable to renting privately, with the saving made each month going towards buying a home through Shared Ownership.
The aim of London Living Rent is to support middle-income buyers to get onto the property ladder and purchase their own homes. It’s designed to allow renters to save at their own pace over a period of years, as properties under London Living Rent guarantee tenants an assured shorthold tenancy of a minimum of three years and a maximum of ten.
Guide to London Living Rent
Search Shared Ownership homes
Discover a range of new-build Shared Ownership homes throughout London and the Home Counties.
Find out what our homeowners say
Buying a first home, getting married and preparing for the arrival of a baby are all busy life events. Raph and Jaye would know, after experiencing all these milestones simultaneously. They purchased a 25% share of a two-bedroom apartment at The Switch in Wimbledon, with a £42,600 deposit.
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After spending years renting in London, wealth manager Aroma Khan purchased a 30% share of a three bedroom apartment in Queensbury, northwest London. She had no idea that, just two years later, she would be staircasing her way up to 100% ownership with a friend.
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Luca moved to London from Italy to work at a university. After a few years renting in London, Luca was able to purchase a 50% share of a bright two-bedroom, two-bathroom home through Shared Ownership at Arden, in Lewisham.
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Shared Ownership
Shared Ownership allows buyers to own a share in a new property and is designed to make homeownership more accessible for those who have smaller deposits and may not have the budget to buy a new home outright.
London Living Rent
London Living Rent is funded by the Mayor and it's a type of intermediate affordable housing for middle-income Londoners who want to build up savings to buy a home. London Living Rent is designed to help people transition from renting to shared ownership meaning that money you save on rent can go towards a deposit for your own home.
Homeowner Stories
Read a collection of homeowner stories from Peabody New Homes and discover how we were able to support them onto the property ladder through the Shared Ownership buying scheme.