Help to Buy ‘an unmitigated success’, say house builders

The Government’s Help to Buy equity loan scheme has been a huge success and should be continued, according to the house building trade body.

The Home Builders Federation (HBF) has published a report which claims that, since the launch of Help to Buy in April 2014:

• 170,000 households have used the scheme, 81% first time buyers;
• Housing supply is up 74%;
• The value of Government investment is up an estimated 10.5% or around £1bn; 
• 150,000 jobs have been supported and sustained due to extra supply; and
• Planning permissions are up 88%.

There were 48,000 homes sold through Help to Buy last year, with the median household income for those using the scheme being £49,000.

New builds now account for almost 15% of mortgaged housing market transactions compared to a long-term average of 8.2%, the HBF says.

The report also says that Help to Buy has not driven up new build house prices, as some critics argue, with the respective increase in price between new builds and second-hand homes “remarkably consistent”.

Stewart Baseley, executive chairman of the HBF, said; “It is quite clear that the Help to Buy scheme has been an unmitigated success and has delivered handsomely on all its objectives. It has enabled hundreds of thousands of people to realise their dream of owning a home, the vast majority of whom are first time buyers on average incomes. It has led to an unprecedented increase in house building activity, created tens of thousands of jobs and boosted local economies the length and breadth of the country.

“Government should celebrate its success and use the hard evidence now available to rebut the claims of its critics. As we look to tackle our acute housing crisis and deliver on the Prime Minister’s target to build 300,000 homes per year the scheme has a key part to play. Government should reflect on the huge impact the scheme is having on individuals keen to realise their dreams of home ownership, on housing supply and on the wider economy.

”House builders continue to invest in the land, materials and people needed to deliver furthers increases in supply confident in the demand Help to Buy is underpinning. Certainty moving forward is now required to enable the increases in housing supply, and the associated social and economic benefits, to continue.”