DIY Homebuy Scheme gets first-time buyers onto the property ladder

First time buyers in Blaenau Gwent are being given a helping hand up the property ladder thanks to a new £150,000 scheme run by United Welsh.

The DIY Homebuy Option will lend first-time buyers up to 30 per cent of the cost of their home on a first-come-first-served basis on property purchases completed by mid March 2006.  This means, once they have found the home they want to buy, purchasers only have to fund 70 per cent of the sale price through either a mortgage or mortgage and deposit combined.

The homebuyer - who will own the house outright - can pay off the loan at any time but there is no obligation to pay it back until they sell when they repay 30% of the sale price.

The scheme is supervised and funded by the National Assembly for Wales and run by United Welsh, which also provides 650 homes for rent and 220 homes for over-55s in the borough.  Funding is available until March 2006 for those who are keen to take advantage of the deal.

Richard Mann, director of development at United Welsh, said: “This is a fantastic scheme which deals head-on with the situation facing first-time buyers, and makes all the difference to people in Blaenau Gwent wanting to get their foot on the property ladder to buy a home of their own.

“United Welsh is 100% committed to playing its part with the local authority and the Assembly in bringing affordable housing to Blaenau Gwent, both to buy and to rent.”

Over the past three years, house prices in Wales have increased dramatically, with the average house now costing £138,329.  Despite reports of a slow-down, Land Registry figures show that house prices in Wales are rising more than 10 per cent year-on-year, which is double the English rate.  In Blaenau Gwent, the average house price in April-June 2005 was £82,749; £16,000 more than during the same period in 2004, when the average property was £66,978.

Richard Mann added: “The spiralling cost of property prices has meant that home ownership is simply not an option for many first time buyers in Blaenau Gwent.  This new scheme will help to address this while encouraging momentum in the housing market that would otherwise stagnate.

“The DIY Homebuy Option operates on a first come first served basis so I would urge anyone thinking about taking advantage of the deal to act quickly and contact us without delay.”

For further information please contact United Welsh at its Caerphilly head office on 029 2085 8165.

(11th October 2005)