Previous News Reports
FIRST TIME BUYERS’ INITIATIVE - SWINDON AND BRISTOL
The First Time Buyer’s Initiative is part of the Government’s low cost home ownership programme and is designed to provide a “stepping stone“ into 100% full home ownership for key workers and other first time buyers.
FTBI is a form of “equity mortgage“ product offering first time buyers an affordable share (minimum 50 per cent) in a new home with English Partnerships retaining the unsold equity. Purchasers will be expected to purchase as large a share as they can afford and will be encouraged to increase their equity in order eventually to move to full ownership. More equity can be acquired at any time at open market value and 10 per cent is the minimum additional purchase.
After the first 3 years, purchasers will pay a charge to English Partnerships based on a percentage of the equity retained by English Partnerships.
Properties are currently available from Wimpey Homes at Royal Mead, and Oakley Park, in Swindon.
We are also about to launch more properties from Barratt Homes in Temple Quay, Bristol.
If you are a first time buyer and finding it difficult to get that first foot on the housing ladder, this may be an affordable solution.
We make it easy to be considered for one of these new homes, apply on line with us today!
Simply visit the “How to Apply” pages of this web site.
FIRST TIME BUYERS’ INITIATIVE COMING SOON TO SWINDON AND BRISTOL
The First Time Buyer’s Initiative is part of the Government’s low cost home ownership programme and is designed to provide a “stepping stone” into full home ownership for key workers and other eligible first time buyers.
FTBI is a form of “equity mortgage” product offering first time buyers an affordable share (minimum 50 per cent) in a new home with English Partnerships retaining the unsold equity. Purchasers will be expected to purchase as large a share as they can afford and will be encouraged to increase their equity in order eventually to move to full ownership. More equity can be acquired at any time at open market value and 10 per cent is the minimum additional purchase.
After the first 3 years, purchasers will pay a charge to English Partnerships based on a percentage of the equity retained by English Partnerships.
The first properties will be available from Wimpey Homes at Royal Mead, off Okus Road, and Oakley Park, former St Joes, Swindon early in 2007, with more to follow during the year, and from Barratt Homes in Bristol during 2007 and 2008. If you are a first time buyer and finding it difficult to get that first foot on the housing ladder, this may be an affordable solution.
EXPANDED OPEN MARKET HOMEBUY SCHEME ANNOUNCED
The new expanded Open Market HomeBuy scheme was launched on Monday 2 October by Housing Minister, Yvette Cooper, and is anticipated to help an extra 20,000 people countrywide to buy their own home. Although mortgage rates are still low, rising house prices have put pressure on first time buyers, who are finding it increasingly difficult to get a foot on the housing ladder.
The Government has teamed up with four private sector lenders, Nationwide, Yorkshire Building Society, Bank of Scotland and Advantage(part of the Morgan Stanley group) to offer a mortgage that will help boost purchasers’ buying power by up to 25 per cent. The new scheme will allow purchasers to apply for a regular mortgage topped up with an equity loan from the lender, together with a further equity loan funded by the Government.
The scheme is available to existing local authority and housing association tenants, people on a housing waiting list, key workers and other priority first time buyers. Applicants will need to register with their HomeBuy Agent to access the scheme and will need to be able to fund 75 per cent of their purchase with a mortgage offered by one of the 4 lenders.
No deposit is required, and monthly repayments will start at around 20 per cent less than buying without assistance. The scheme allows buyers to choose a property on the open market within their price range. There are no charges on the lender’s equity loan for the first 5 years, and no charge will ever be made on the Government’s equity loan. In return both the lender and the Government will be entitled to a share of any increase in the value of the property when it is sold.
The Government is committed to helping more than 100,000 households into home ownership by 2010. Yvette Cooper said:
"We want to help more families get a first step on to the housing ladder. If you haven’t got family or friends who can help, it can be hard to get started. In the long run we need to build more homes to ease the pressure on house prices. But in the meantime this new mortgage deal will help thousands of families into a home of their own".
HOUSING MINISTER ANNOUNCES NEW HELP FOR FIRST TIME BUYERS (28/03/06)
Housing Minister Yvette Cooper will unveil more help for first time buyers alongside plans to deliver more homes that our next generation needs, this week.
Speaking at a shared equity conference in London on Tuesday, the minister will announce details of 23 new ‘HomeBuy Agents’ - one stop shops to give first time buyers clear advice on how they could be helped by the new HomeBuy scheme by buying a part share in properties with the rest of the costs met by lenders and registered social landlords.
Yvette Cooper will also announce a new Shared Equity Task Force drawing together the public and private sectors to identify the longer term potential for rolling out further shared equity products. The Conference on Tuesday will be attended by major private house builders and housing associations interested in expanding shared equity schemes.
These measures build on £970m set out in the Budget for the National Affordable Housing Programme to deliver 35,000 new low cost home ownership properties as well as funding announced last week for 49,000 more social homes for rent to be built over the next two years. A new extra homes pilot scheme to bring forward more social homes in London to help people out of expensive temporary accommodation was also announced last week.
On Monday the Government will also announce a deal to create around 10,000 new homes including shared equity units at a former MoD site at Northstowe in Cambridgeshire. The land is being transferred to English Partnerships who are working with local agencies in Cambridgeshire to deliver the new homes.
The site, the latest use of surplus public sector land for housing, will be the first ‘exemplar’ development in the Government’s growth areas with high eco-standards including micro-renewable technology contributing to a 50 per cent reduction in energy and water use. Local services and amenities will also be provided in a sustainable way.
Yvette Cooper’s press release says:
“These are practical steps to help families get a first foot on the housing ladder – with extra investment in the Budget, one stop shops to give them help and advice, and Home Information Packs from next year to save them hundreds of pounds on searches and surveys.
“We also want to use public sector land like the site at Northstowe to build more homes for the next generation at high environmental standards. If we don’t build more homes for the next generation, then within 20 years we will see the proportion of thirty year old couples able to afford their own home drop from over 50% to nearer 30%. That’s not fair on the rising generation.”
The Government set
out its response to the Barker Review in the pre Budget
report, including proposals to increase new homes, raise environmental
standards, reform the planning system, and consult on a
Planning Gain Supplement to raise additional resources for investment
in infrastructure.
