Help To Buy Wales

Thanks to the relaunch of the Help to Buy Scheme in Wales, it’s now become more possible – and affordable – for first time buyers to purchase a home. Effective from April 2023, but similar to the previous model, the Help to Buy Wales scheme is only permitted for new build homes purchased from a participating builder.

How it works

Help to Buy is a relatively simple scheme whereby the buyer will be provided a shared equity loan to purchase a new build home. This loan will be the equivalent of 20% of the total purchase price. All buyers must provide a deposit that’s 5% of the property value and take out a repayment mortgage to cover the remaining amount owed on the home.

Here is an example of how this would work based on a property valued at £200,000:

	Monetary Value	Percentage
Your deposit	£10,000	5%
Help to Buy equity loan	£40,000	20%
Your mortgage	£150,000	75%

Please note that Help to Buy Wales is not available on all properties and properties must be no more than £300,000 in value.

Help to Buy Wales

Who is eligible?

It’s important before you look to utilise the scheme to purchase your home that you’re eligible and in a position to afford it. There are a few eligibility criteria you should be aware of:

You must be purchasing an eligible home with a maximum property value of £300,000
You can only purchase a home on Help to Buy through a builder who is registered with Help to Buy Wales
You must be in a financial position to be able to afford the monthly repayments of your mortgage, and at least 80% of the property value (the rest of the value will be covered by your 5% deposit and 20% equity loan)
You must have a mortgage agreement in principal from a mortgage lender for the required value to cover the 75% of the property value
You cannot sublet the home you purchase via Help to Buy Wales
If you are a current homeowner, you cannot purchase a 2nd home through this scheme

Paying your equity loan

Unlike some other types of loans, your equity loan repayments work a little differently. Your shared equity loan will need to be repaid within a period of 25 years from purchasing your home, but you can complete the payment in full at any time during this period.

Your loan can be repaid either through paying a proportion of the loan granted or you can pay your loan in full without selling your property. This option is known as staircasing and can be done any time after the completion of your home sale. Be aware that the value you pay back must be at least 5% of the market value and you cannot staircase if you are in arrears with your monthly payments.