New Proposals Outlined In Budget

A property expert at Irwin Mitchell has welcomed plans outlined in the Budget which will see first-time buyers given access to funds that will help them enter the housing market.

Chancellor George Osborne has confirmed in his speech today (March 23rd) that the £250 million FirstBuy package is being created to provide assistance to around 10,000 people with incomes of up to £60,000 who are looking to buy a new-build house or flat.

Under the terms of the scheme, the government and the house builder involved will each put up 10 per cent of the cost of a property, while the buyer would have to generate a five per cent deposit alongside the rest of the cost in loans and savings.

It is hoped that, as well as providing a timely boost to the property market, the move will also safeguard a number of jobs within the construction sector.

Irwin Mitchell’s Conveyancing team, which specialise in providing advice and support to those looking to buy and sell property, has welcomed the new plans.

Lisa Shenton, head of Irwin Mitchell’s Conveyancing team, said: “The market in the past three years has been hampered significantly by the lack of first-time buyers able to get their foot in the door.

“Any assistance that can be made available to them is always going to have an encouraging impact on the sector, providing a timely stimulus to the market and hopefully will help get the number of transactions on the move once again.

“In recent years the sector has seen a rise in the number of people turning to friends and family for financial help in buying a home, but often such agreements can get complicated if relationships break down in the future.

“The introduction of the FirstBuy scheme is likely to give people who have considered such a move another option to consider when getting their funds in order to purchase their first property. In many cases, first-time buyers are able to afford the monthly mortgage payments but simply haven’t saved enough money for a 20 per cent deposit.”