The price limits for the Your First Home scheme have now been revealed, showing how much eligible buyers will be able to spend in different parts of England.
In Lancashire, the maximum property price ranges from £230,000 in Burnley to £300,000 in Chorley and Bolton.
Buyers in Blackpool will be able to purchase a home worth up to £235,000, while the cap in Preston is £280,000.
The scheme is designed to help thousands of households buy their first home by allowing eligible buyers to put down a deposit of just 2.5% of the purchase price, alongside a repayment mortgage and a Government equity loan worth 20%.
The loan will be interest-free for the first five years.
Applications are expected to open in February, with the first sales due to take place in April.
Your First Home price caps across Lancashire
The Government has set different property price limits for each local authority, reflecting differences in house prices across England.
The caps for Lancashire include:
- Burnley: £230,000
- Blackpool: £235,000
- Hyndburn: £240,000
- Pendle: £250,000
- Wyre: £255,000
- South Ribble: £265,000
- Rossendale: £270,000
- Blackburn with Darwen: £275,000
- Fylde: £275,000
- West Lancashire: £275,000
- Preston: £280,000
- Ribble Valley: £280,000
- Lancaster: £285,000
- Chorley: £300,000
How much can first-time buyers spend elsewhere in the North West?
The price caps also vary considerably across Greater Manchester, Merseyside, Cheshire and Cumbria.
The limits include:
Greater Manchester
- Bolton: £300,000
- Bury: £340,000
- Manchester: £355,000
- Salford: £305,000
- Stockport: £305,000
- Tameside: £310,000
- Trafford: £285,000
- Wigan: £270,000
- Oldham: £300,000
- Rochdale: £275,000
Merseyside
- Liverpool: £235,000
- Knowsley: £285,000
- Sefton: £290,000
- St Helens: £270,000
- Wirral: £255,000
Cheshire
- Cheshire East: £310,000
- Cheshire West and Chester: £295,000
- Halton: £305,000
- Warrington: £360,000
Cumbria
- Cumberland: £220,000
- Westmorland and Furness: £275,000
How does the Your First Home scheme work?
Eligible buyers will be able to purchase a new-build property in England using three elements:
- A deposit of at least 2.5% of the purchase price
- A repayment mortgage from a participating lender
- A Government equity loan worth 20% of the purchase price, which will be interest-free for the first five years
Buyers will still need to pass affordability checks and secure a mortgage from a participating lender.
The scheme is expected to open for applications in February, with the first sales taking place in April.
Who can apply for Your First Home?
Buyers will normally need to meet the following criteria:
- Be a first-time buyer
- Purchase a new-build home in England
- Buy a property within the relevant local authority price cap
- Use the property as their main home
- Have a total annual household income of no more than £110,000 outside London or £140,000 within London
- Be able to obtain a mortgage from a participating lender
The price caps have been set to ensure the scheme supports buyers looking for more modest homes, with limits varying according to local property markets.
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Aneisha Beveridge, Connells Group research director, said: “The level at which the caps have been set should give would-be first-time buyers access to a choice of both flats and smaller houses in most areas, ensuring healthy take-up of the scheme.
“While larger houses mostly sit above the price caps, this isn’t unreasonable for a scheme designed to support first-time buyers.
“In the short term, these figures show what existing stock can likely be sold using Your First Home, but longer term, the caps will start to shape what homes housebuilders decide to deliver.
“The new price caps may also help breathe life back into the flat market, by encouraging more first-time buyers to consider apartments in order to benefit from the interest-free equity loan.”
Are you looking at buying your first home? Let us know where in the comments below.
