Your First Home

Designed to help first-time buyers purchase a new build home in England with just a 2.5% deposit, the Your First Home scheme gives you a helping hand without needing years of savings or relying on family support.

Here is everything you need to know about how Your First Home works, if you're eligible and what it could mean for your plans to buy a Gleeson home. 

Your First Home is a new government equity-loan scheme that could help first-time buyers in England buy a new build home with a lower deposit. As part of the scheme, you can buy a new home with a deposit of 2.5% and receive a government equity loan of up to 20% of the purchase price, leaving a mortgage to take care of the rest. 

As part of the scheme, your home is paid for in three parts: 

• Your deposit, starting at 2.5% of the purchase price. That’s half the 5% that first-time buyers are usually required to have. 
• A government equity loan worth up to 20% of the purchase price. This is what the government will lend you part of the purchase price to help you buy. 
• A repayment mortgage for the remaining amount.  

In simple terms, buyers will contribute a 2.5% deposit, supported by a 20% Government equity loan, with the remaining 77.5% financed through a mortgage from a participating lender.

For a £250,000 new-build Gleeson home, you could purchase your home with:

 £6,250 deposit

 £50,000 Government equity loan

£193,750 mortgage

Please note: these figures are for illustration purposes only.

The government equity loan will cover 20% of your home’s purchase price. For the first five years, this equity loan is interest-free, but from year six, interest will apply at 1.5%, rising to 3% from year seven. It is important to understand that those interest payments are separate from your mortgage and do not reduce the amount you owe on the loan.

You would normally repay the equity loan when you sell your home, although you may be able to repay some or all of it sooner. As the loan represents 20% of your home’s value, the amount you repay can change over time. So, if your home goes up in value, the amount you repay may be higher but if its value goes down, the amount may be lower. 

To apply for the Your First Home scheme, you'll normally need to:  

• Be a first-time buyer 
• Buy an eligible new-build home in England  
• Live in the property as your main home 
• Have a total household income of no more than £110,000 outside London, or £140,000 in London 
• Buy a new home within the local price cap 
• Secure a repayment mortgage from a lender taking part in the scheme 
• Pass your lender's affordability and credit checks  

The price cap will depend on the area where you want to buy. Find the price cap for your area on the official gov.uk website here.

Customer pre-registration is expected to open by the end of December 2026. Joining the pre-registration process will not tie you into buying a home, but it should give you more information about the scheme and the price cap in the area you are looking at. 

Full applications are expected to open from February 2027, with the first sales through the scheme expected from April 2027. 

If the scheme sounds like it could help you get moving into your first home, register your interest below. We will keep you updated as more details are released, including which of our new homes are taking part and how to apply. 

Can't wait to move? You don't have to! Explore our full range of new home buying schemes aimed at helping first-time buyers get on the property ladder here, so you can find a way to make your move sooner.

Full terms and conditions of the Your First Home scheme will be published by the government before applications open.

Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage.