Government announces 20% FTB discount

First time buyers can register their interest via the Starter Home initiative from the start of next year, six months earlier than originially planned.

The scheme will allow house builders to develop under-used or unviable brownfield land free from planning costs and levies in return for a below market value sale price on homes built on the site.

Currently, builders can face an average bill of £15,000 per home, often adding tens of thousands to the cost of a site. Under the proposals, the homes could not be re-sold at market value for a fixed period to allow these savings to be passed onto homebuyers.

More than 30 house builders have said that that they support the plans and are already said to be looking at potential sites for new homes.

The Prime Minister has today announced that a design panel of famous architects such as Sir Terry Farrell and Sir Quinlan Terry will ensure that the new homes are high quality and well-designed, as well as low cost.

David Cameron said:

"Hardworking young people want to plan for the future and enjoy the security of being able to own their own home. I want to help them do just that.

"Under this scheme, first-time buyers will be offered the chance of a 20% discount, unlocking home ownership for a generation.

"This is all part of our long-term economic plan to secure a better future for Britain, making sure we are backing those who work hard and get on in life."

Stewart Baseley, executive chairman of the Home Builders Federation said:

"Increasing housing supply is a huge and complex challenge and significant barriers remain. Bringing forward more land for house building, while also enabling more first time buyers to realise their ambition of home ownership would be another positive step on the way to tackling the housing shortage.

"The industry is keen to work with government to develop policies that would allow for more high quality homes to be built in the right places."

Communities Secretary Eric Pickles said:

"The 2008 housing crash blocked millions of hard-working, creditworthy people from becoming homeowners, at a time in their lives when they should have been able to expect to get on the property ladder.

"We’re turning that around with Help to Buy, but today’s new Starter Homes scheme will offer a further boost, giving people under 40 the opportunity to buy low cost, high quality new homes for significantly less than they would normally expect."

Sir Terry Farrell CBE, Founding Partner at Farrells, said:

"This panel has the potential to make a real difference. It builds on the recommendations of the Farrell Review, which highlighted the need for more proactive planning and better placemaking as we attempt to address the housing crisis, with radically higher priority given to landscape, sustainability and the public realm.

"Only by planning and designing our villages, towns and cities together with local communities can we create the kind of built environment we all aspire to and should be demanding."