Help for first time buyers

L&Q is offering a new flexible equity loan product to help first-time buyers purchase homes on the open market.

MyChoiceHomeBuy was designed by the CHASE consortium of eight housing associations, including L&Q. It offers straightforward financial assistance into the housing market for people who can't afford to buy a home outright. It was formally announced by Chancellor of the Exchequer Alistair Darling in the Budget and has been marketed since April 2008.

Who MyChoiceHomeBuy will help:

• Social rented tenants and housing association tenants
• Local residents prioritised on local authority housing waiting lists
• Public sector key workers
• Other first-time buyers
• People with household incomes of £20,000 to £60,000

L&Q offers MyChoiceHomeBuy in its existing HomeBuy Agent areas of south east and south west London, covering Richmond Upon Thames, Kingston Upon Thames, Wandsworth, Merton, Sutton, Croydon, Lambeth, Southwark, Lewisham, Bromley, Bexley and Greenwich. Anyone interested can find out more and apply at Housing Options.

MyChoiceHomeBuy is also available nationally through the other CHASE consortium members. Applicants should contact their local HomeBuy Agent to find out more; they can find out who this is by visiting www.communities.gov.uk.

Benefits:

• Purchasers buy shares from 50 to 85 per cent of the value of the property and can borrow from any main mortgage lender
• No deposit needed
• Remaining 15 to 50 per cent: jointly funded by L&Q and the Housing Corporation (secured by a second charge on the property)
• Affordable monthly ‘fee’ (initially 1.75%) on the outstanding equity
• Option to staircase upwards as circumstances change

MyChoiceHomeBuy is one of two new shared equity products that will support the Government’s drive to assist 160,000 households into home ownership by 2010. The Housing Corporation is providing funding for at least three years.

Group Chief Executive David Montague says: “The Government has set challenging targets for helping people into home ownership. Whilst new build HomeBuy is very popular, it relies on new homes being built, which takes time. Equity loan products are vital to speed up delivery. L&Q aims to deliver at least 800 equity loans a year.”

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