First-time buyers, England
Your First Home scheme: deposit and mortgage illustration
This new first-time buyer scheme is often described as a new Help to Buy. The old Help to Buy equity loan scheme has closed, and this is a different, new scheme. It has been announced but is not open for applications. It is also not the separate First Homes scheme. This page sets out what has been announced, what has not, and an illustration of the deposit and mortgage on the expected figures.
Try the calculator Not open for applications. Illustration only: it does not check anyone's circumstances.
Last updated: .
Scheme status
What the announcement says
- The scheme is expected to support a 2.5% deposit, backed by a 20% government-backed equity loan with an initial interest-free period. These figures are expected, not final.
- New-build homes from developers signed up to the scheme, in England.
- Developers are expected to make a contribution when they sign up.
Still unknown
- How long the interest-free period lasts, and the charges that follow it.
- The household income cap.
- The local property price caps.
- Whether a deposit larger than the minimum is allowed.
- The date applications open, and how to apply.
- Which developers and lenders will take part.
Official source: GOV.UK announcement, 26 September 2026. Checked 28 September 2026.
Try your own numbers
Change the price or the deposit. The results update as you type and nothing you enter is sent anywhere. The calculator needs JavaScript; the worked example above does not.
The full price of the new-build home.
Set to the expected 2.5% deposit, as an illustration. Change it to try a different deposit.
Check your cash (optional)
Savings you could put towards the purchase. Leave blank if you would rather not compare.
Your own allowance for costs such as legal fees, surveys and moving. This calculator does not estimate it. Whether to include VAT is your choice, so use the same basis as your quotes and do not count a cost twice.
Illustration
- Purchase price
- £230,000
- Deposit Illustrative minimum (2.5%)
- £5,750
- Equity loan (20%) A loan that is repaid, not a grant
- £46,000
- Mortgage needed
- £178,250
- Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) Shown separately, see the assumptions below
- £0
- Known upfront amount Deposit plus SDLT only
- £5,750
- Cash available
- Not entered
- Other upfront costs
- Not entered
- Estimated upfront cash Deposit, SDLT and your other costs
- Not entered: add other upfront costs
- Illustrated cash gap
- Not entered: add cash available and other upfront costs
The SDLT figure assumes a main residence in England, and that all relevant buyers qualify for first-time buyer relief and are UK resident for SDLT purposes. It does not determine either status, and the scheme's own buyer rules are a separate test. The tax is rounded down to the whole pound, as HMRC does. Check it with HMRC's Stamp Duty Land Tax calculator before relying on it.
- Whether deposits larger than the minimum are permitted is unresolved.
- Unknown scheme charges are excluded.
Scheme status: Not open for applications.
Rules version 2026-09-29.1. Tax version sdlt-2025-04-01. Calculation version 1. Scheme source checked 28 September 2026. Tax source checked 28 September 2026.
Illustration only, based on expected scheme parameters that are not final. It does not check the income cap, local price caps, whether a developer or lender takes part, or anyone's circumstances. It is not a lender decision or advice.
Found a home? Check the address before you commit
The free preview checks flood risk, EPC rating, crime, tenure and air quality for one address. Subsidence and the other checks are in the £9.99 full report. A new-build plot with no address record yet may show little.
Cash you may need beyond the deposit
The deposit is not the only money to find before you complete. Costs to plan for include:
- Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT). The calculator shows it as a separate line, using first-time buyer relief where it applies.
- Legal and conveyancing fees, and the searches your conveyancer orders.
- A survey or valuation, if you commission one, and any lender valuation fee.
- Mortgage arrangement or broker fees, if your lender or broker charges them.
- Moving costs, and furnishing or fitting out a new home.
- Anything the developer asks for at reservation or exchange. Ask what is refundable.
For wider estimates, see the cost of buying a house calculator and the stamp duty calculator.
The equity loan is not a grant
The government-backed equity loan is a loan. It has to be repaid, and it is not free money that reduces the price. The length of the interest-free period and the charges that follow it have not been published. How repayment works is not modelled on this page.
This page therefore does not model any charges on the equity loan. Do not assume the charging timetable of the old Help to Buy scheme applies to this one.
Optional: a monthly repayment figure
This turns the illustrated mortgage into a monthly figure using an interest rate and term that you choose. No rate is pre-filled, because the scheme does not set one and no lender has been named. It covers the mortgage only, not the equity loan or other costs.
Try an interest rate and term
No rate is pre-filled. Type an assumption to see what it would mean. It is not a product, an offer or a forecast.
A whole number of years from 1 to 40.
Mortgage repayment only
Enter an interest rate to see a monthly figure. This is an illustration of the mortgage only.
Not included: equity loan charges and repayment, service and estate charges, insurance, tax and maintenance. Those are separate costs and some are not yet published.
Next steps
Investigate a property or area
If you have an address, the free property preview looks up public records for that address. A new-build plot may not have an established address, energy certificate or sale history yet, so the results may be thin. Only use it for the address you are actually considering. It is not a snagging inspection or a check on build quality.
If you only have a postcode, these checkers give area context. A postcode result is not a site assessment or a clearance for the development.
Follow official updates
The rules are not final. The announcement says the income cap, price caps and implementation timelines will be set out at the Budget. GOV.UK is where any changes will be published, so check there.
Recorded new-build prices shows what new-build homes in England have actually sold for by region and council. It is historic sales, not the price of any home you might buy under the scheme.
What to ask a broker or developer
Much of the scheme is unconfirmed, so ask these before you commit to a reservation.
- Is this development, and this developer, signed up to the scheme?
- Is the price of this home within the local price cap once caps are published?
- Which lenders will lend on the scheme, and do they have any rules of their own on deposits or new-build homes?
- What are the exact equity loan terms, how long is the interest-free period, and what is charged after it?
- Are there service charges, estate charges or ground rent, and what are they now?
- What is the expected completion date, and what happens to your reservation if the scheme opens later than expected?
- What must you pay upfront, when, and is any of it refundable?
Frequently asked questions
Is the Your First Home scheme open for applications?
No. It was announced on 26 September 2026. It is not open for applications. No opening date has been published. The GOV.UK announcement says the detail will be set out at the Budget.
Is it the same as Help to Buy?
No. It is often described as a new Help to Buy, but the old Help to Buy equity loan scheme has closed and this is a different, new scheme with its own rules. It is also separate from the First Homes scheme, which is a different discount scheme.
How much deposit would I need?
The announcement says the scheme is expected to support a 2.5% deposit. On a £230,000 home that would be £5,750. Whether a deposit larger than the minimum is allowed has not been confirmed. Stamp Duty Land Tax and other costs are paid on top of the deposit.
How does the equity loan work?
The announcement says the scheme is expected to be backed by a 20% government-backed equity loan, with an initial interest-free period. It is a loan that has to be repaid, not a grant. The length of the interest-free period and the charges that follow it have not been published.
Can I use it to buy an existing home?
The announcement describes new-build homes from developers signed up to the scheme. It does not say anything about other kinds of property, so this page does not assume the scheme covers them.
What are the income cap and the price caps?
The household income cap has not been published. The local property price caps have not been published. The source says: “household income cap with local property price caps ... detail of which will be set out at Budget”. This calculator does not check either.
Does this calculator tell me whether I can use the scheme?
No. It is an illustration of the deposit, equity loan and mortgage on the expected figures. It does not check the income cap, price caps, developer or lender participation, or your circumstances, and it is not a lender decision.
Methodology and sources
Every scheme figure here comes from a single rules file with a status and a source passage for each rule. A rule that is unknown is never used in a calculation. Money is calculated in whole pence: the equity loan is the price times the expected equity loan rate, rounded to the nearest penny, the minimum deposit is the price times the expected minimum deposit rate, rounded up to the next penny, and the mortgage is what remains after both.
| Rule | Value | Status | Source passage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum deposit | 2.5% | Announced, not confirmed | This is expected to support 2.5% deposits, backed by 20% government-backed equity loans The announcement says the scheme is expected to support these figures; they are not final. |
| Government-backed equity loan | 20% | Announced, not confirmed | backed by 20% government-backed equity loans The announcement says the scheme is expected to support these figures; they are not final. |
| Initial interest-free period | Not published | Unknown | equity loans with an initial interest free period An initial interest-free period is announced; its length and later charges are not. |
| Household income cap | Not published | Unknown | household income cap with local property price caps ... detail of which will be set out at Budget |
| Local property price caps | Not published | Unknown | household income cap with local property price caps ... detail of which will be set out at Budget |
| Geography | England | Announced, not confirmed | a new equity loan scheme - Your First Home - in England |
| Property type | new-build from a participating developer | Announced, not confirmed | new-build property from a developer signed up to the scheme |
| Developer contribution | Yes | Announced, not confirmed | Developers will be expected to make a contribution when signing up to the scheme to help cover costs The announcement says developers will be expected to contribute; the amount and terms are not published. |
| Deposits larger than the minimum | Not published | Unknown | This is expected to support 2.5% deposits, backed by 20% government-backed equity loans The announcement gives the expected deposit but does not say whether a larger deposit is allowed. |
| Applications open | Not published | Unknown | including costs and implementation timelines, will be announced by the Chancellor at the Budget next month No opening date has been published. |
Where each rule comes from
- GOV.UK announcement, 26 September 2026: Minimum deposit, Government-backed equity loan, Initial interest-free period, Household income cap, Local property price caps, Geography, Property type, Developer contribution, Deposits larger than the minimum, Applications open. Checked 28 September 2026.
Stamp Duty Land Tax
First-time buyer relief: 0% up to £300,000, 5% from £300,001 to £500,000; no relief above £500,000 (standard rates apply). Source: GOV.UK residential property rates, checked 28 September 2026. The SDLT figure assumes a main residence in England, and that all relevant buyers qualify for first-time buyer relief and are UK resident for SDLT purposes. It does not determine either status, and the scheme's own buyer rules are a separate test. Above £500,000, relief is not available and standard rates are shown. Even the standard-rate illustration leaves out circumstances it does not support, such as the surcharge for buyers who are not UK resident (usually 2%) and the higher rates for additional properties. Check the figure with HMRC's Stamp Duty Land Tax calculator before relying on it.
Versions and changes
Rules version 2026-09-29.1. Tax version sdlt-2025-04-01. Calculation version 1.
- 28 September 2026, version 2026-09-28.1. Initial rules recorded from the 26 September 2026 GOV.UK announcement: 2.5% deposit and 20% equity loan announced; income cap, price caps, interest-free period and opening date unknown.
- 29 September 2026, version 2026-09-29.1. Recorded the announced developer contribution as its own rule and whether deposits above the minimum are permitted (unknown). No figures changed.
How MyPropertyScan produces this guide, and what it is not
Published by MyPropertyScan and written by Ziad Nasr, who is accountable for its accuracy. No page here is written or reviewed by a chartered surveyor, conveyancer or regulated adviser, and we do not claim otherwise.
This page is not:
- Chartered surveying: we do not inspect properties or produce RICS Home Survey reports
- Legal advice: we do not act as conveyancers or advise on title, tenure or contracts
- Mortgage or insurance advice: we are not regulated by the FCA and give no recommendations
Figures and process steps come from the published UK datasets and standards listed on this page, not from professional practice. Pages are updated when source coverage, survey cost assumptions, or lender and legal requirements materially change. Dataset limitations are set out on the methodology page.
Spotted something out of date or wrong? Email [email protected] and we will correct it and change the update date.
There are no paid placements on this page. MyPropertyScan sells an optional property report; it is not needed to use this calculator.
General information and illustration only. Not tax, legal, mortgage or financial advice. Confirm the current scheme rules, costs and lender requirements with the official sources, a mortgage broker and your conveyancer. MyPropertyScan is operated by BiteRight Ltd.