Help to Buy: equity loan scheme surging ahead

The Help to Buy equity loan scheme has captured the imagination of the public with more than 15,000 reservations for new build homes in the first six months, the Government has revealed.

Housing Minister Kris Hopkins said the equity loan scheme, part of the Government's Help to Buy programme, had given the housing market a kickstart by driving up the rate of housebuilding and helping hardworking families buy a home.

Under the equity loan scheme buyers can purchase new build homes with just a 5% deposit, facilitated by an equity loan from the government of up to 20% on properties with a value of £600,000 or less.