Getting onto the property ladder is hard, and several government and industry schemes exist to help, though they change over time. This guide gives an overview of home-buying schemes available in 2026: what each does, who they suit, and the important point that rules and availability vary and should always be checked.
Why schemes exist
Home-buying schemes are designed to help people, especially first-time buyers, who struggle with the cost of a deposit or buying at full market price. Some reduce the deposit needed, some offer homes at a discount, and some boost your savings. With house prices high relative to incomes, these schemes aim to make ownership more achievable, though each works differently and suits different circumstances, as the rest of this guide explains.
Shared Ownership
Shared Ownership lets you buy a share of a home, typically between 10% and 75%, and pay rent on the rest to a housing association, so you need a mortgage and deposit only for the share you buy, as our guide to shared ownership explains. This lowers the upfront cost and can suit those who cannot afford to buy outright, with the option to buy more over time.
The Mortgage Guarantee Scheme
The Mortgage Guarantee Scheme, made permanent in 2025 and sometimes called Freedom to Buy, helps you buy with just a 5% deposit by giving lenders a government-backed guarantee, supporting 95% mortgages on homes up to £600,000, as our guide to the Mortgage Guarantee Scheme explains. It is open to first-time buyers and home movers, and works behind the scenes when you apply for a 95% mortgage.
First Homes
The First Homes scheme, in England, offers eligible first-time buyers a new-build home at a discount of 30% to 50% below market value, with the discount passed on to future buyers, as our guide to First Homes explains. Availability depends on local councils adopting it, so it is patchy, but where offered it can significantly reduce the price and deposit needed for a first home.
The Lifetime ISA
A Lifetime ISA, or LISA, is a savings account that adds a 25% government bonus to your savings, up to £1,000 a year, to help you buy a first home worth up to £450,000, as our guide to the Lifetime ISA explains. It boosts your deposit savings rather than reducing the price, and can be combined with some other schemes, making it a useful tool for first-time buyers.
Help to Buy and Deposit Unlock
Help to Buy as an equity loan has ended in England, though a version continues in Wales for now, as our guide to Help to Buy explains. For new-builds, Deposit Unlock is an industry scheme letting you buy with a 5% deposit on participating developments, as our guide to Deposit Unlock explains. Both aim to help buyers with smaller deposits, particularly on new-build homes.
Regional variations and Right to Buy
Schemes vary across the UK, with different versions of Shared Ownership and equity loans in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, and First Homes specific to England. Council tenants may be able to buy their home at a discount through Right to Buy, as our guide to Right to Buy explains. So the schemes available to you depend heavily on where you are buying, which is worth checking carefully.
Always check the current rules
Because government schemes change, with some ending, others launching, and rules and price caps being revised, it is essential to check the current details and eligibility before relying on any scheme. What is available and how it works can shift, so confirm the latest position through official sources or a broker. This guide gives an overview, but the specifics should always be verified at the time you buy.
Other new-build schemes
Beyond the main schemes, housebuilders sometimes offer their own support on new-builds, such as rate-reducer schemes that lower your mortgage rate for a period, or other incentives. These are industry rather than government schemes and vary by developer, as our guide to new-build mortgages explains. If you are buying a new-build, it is worth asking the developer what schemes or incentives they offer, alongside the government options.
The Help to Buy ISA
The Help to Buy ISA, a savings account that added a government bonus for first-time buyers, closed to new applicants some years ago, though existing holders can still save into theirs for a limited period, as our guide to the LISA versus the Help to Buy ISA explains. New savers now use the Lifetime ISA instead. Knowing the Help to Buy ISA is closed to new applicants avoids confusion when researching savings schemes.
Which scheme is right for you?
There is no single best scheme; the right one depends on your deposit, income, where you are buying and the type of home. Shared Ownership suits a small deposit, a LISA boosts savings, First Homes offers a discount where available, and the Mortgage Guarantee Scheme helps with a 5% deposit. Considering your circumstances against what each scheme offers, as the detailed guides explain, helps you find the most suitable support.
Schemes and your mortgage
Most schemes still involve a mortgage, so you will need to pass a lender's affordability checks and choose a suitable deal, as our guide to mortgage basics explains. Some schemes have a narrower choice of lenders or specific mortgage requirements. Understanding how a scheme interacts with your mortgage, and that you still need to afford the borrowing, is important when planning to use any of them.
Getting advice
Because schemes have detailed rules and interact with your mortgage and finances, advice can be valuable. A mortgage broker can explain which schemes you qualify for, how they work, and find suitable mortgages, while keeping up with rule changes. Given the complexity and the stakes of buying a home, getting guidance on the right scheme and mortgage for your situation can save money and avoid mistakes.
Combining schemes
Some schemes can be combined, such as using a Lifetime ISA to provide the deposit for a purchase through Shared Ownership, First Homes or the Mortgage Guarantee Scheme, as our guide to the Lifetime ISA explains. Others cannot be used together. Checking which schemes work alongside each other, and how, can stretch your support further, so it is worth understanding the combinations available for your circumstances and the home you want to buy.
Above all, treat this overview as a starting point: each scheme has detailed conditions, price caps and eligibility rules that change over time, so confirm the current details through official sources or a broker before relying on any of them.
In short
In 2026, home-buying schemes include Shared Ownership (buy a share, rent the rest), the Mortgage Guarantee Scheme (5% deposit 95% mortgages), First Homes (discounted new-builds in England), the Lifetime ISA (a 25% savings bonus), Deposit Unlock (new-build low deposits) and Right to Buy for council tenants. Help to Buy has ended in England. Schemes vary by region and change over time, so always check current rules and eligibility.
Where to get help and next steps
Read our guides to shared ownership explained, the Mortgage Guarantee Scheme, First Homes, the Lifetime ISA, and Help to Buy. This is general information, not mortgage or financial advice; scheme rules change, so check current details.