Help to Buy Alternatives in 2026: What's Still Available

Lifetime ISA (LISA)

The Lifetime ISA remains the most valuable savings vehicle for first-time buyers under 40. You can save up to £4,000 per year and the government adds a 25% bonus — that's up to £1,000 per year of free money. You must be between 18 and 39 to open one, and the property you buy must cost £450,000 or less.

The bonus is paid monthly (unlike the old Help to Buy ISA, which paid the bonus at completion), so it's available for your exchange deposit. You must have held the LISA for at least 12 months before using it, so open one as early as possible even if you can only save small amounts initially.

Shared Ownership

Shared ownership lets you buy a share of a property (25% to 75%) and pay rent on the rest to a housing association. It requires a much smaller deposit — typically 5-10% of your share, not the full property value. So for a £300,000 property where you buy a 25% share (£75,000), the deposit could be as low as £3,750.

Since April 2021, new shared ownership leases include the right to staircase (buy more shares) in 1% increments, making gradual ownership more accessible. However, selling a shared ownership property is more complex — the housing association has the right to find a buyer first — and you're responsible for 100% of the maintenance costs, not just your share.

First Homes Scheme

The First Homes scheme offers new-build properties at a minimum 30% discount to market value (some local authorities apply 40% or 50% discounts). The discount is locked in perpetuity — when you sell, the next buyer gets the same percentage discount. This means you build equity at a reduced rate, but you also buy at a reduced price.

Eligibility requirements: you must be a first-time buyer, the property must cost no more than £250,000 after the discount (£420,000 in London), and your household income must be below £80,000 (£90,000 in London). Local authorities can add additional criteria, such as local connection requirements or key worker priorities.

95% Mortgage Guarantee Scheme

While the formal government 95% mortgage guarantee scheme ended in December 2023, many high-street lenders continue to offer 95% LTV mortgages as standard products. The government's intervention helped normalise 5% deposits after lenders withdrew them during the pandemic, and competitive pressure has kept them available.

At 95% LTV, you'll pay a higher interest rate than buyers with larger deposits — typically 0.5-1% more than a 90% LTV product, and 1-2% more than a 75% LTV product. But it's a viable route to homeownership if your savings are limited and your income supports the higher payments.

Deposit Unlock and Builder Schemes

Several major housebuilders partner with lenders to offer 'Deposit Unlock' or equivalent schemes, where the builder provides a guarantee that allows buyers to purchase with a 5% deposit but at interest rates closer to 90% LTV products. This is available on new-build properties from participating builders.

Other builder incentives include furniture packs, stamp duty contributions, and legal fee coverage. These can be genuinely valuable but compare the overall price to resale properties — new-builds typically carry a 10-20% premium that may not be recovered on resale.

Right to Buy and Right to Acquire

Council tenants with at least 3 years' tenancy can buy their home at a significant discount under Right to Buy — up to £96,000 in England (£127,900 in London boroughs). Housing association tenants may be eligible for Right to Acquire, which offers smaller discounts of £9,000–£16,000 depending on location.

These schemes offer the steepest discounts of any route to homeownership, but come with restrictions. If you sell within 5 years, you may have to repay some or all of the discount. The property must be your main home, and you need to be able to secure a mortgage for the discounted purchase price.

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