First-time buyer schemes 2026: the complete list

First-time buyer support in 2026 is a mix of open schemes, closed schemes with legacy rules, and programmes that now vary by nation or tenure. Below is a fact-checked list of what is still available, the main limits, and where buyers often get caught out.

Lifetime ISA: bonus, limits and rules

A Lifetime ISA pays a 25% government bonus on savings, up to £1,000 a year. You can save up to £4,000 a year until age 50, but you must be 18 or over and under 40 to open one, and you must make your first payment before you turn 40. The property you buy as your first home must cost £450,000 or less.

Help to Buy ISA: what still works

You can no longer open a new Help to Buy ISA, but existing savers can still pay in up to £200 a month and claim a 25% government top-up of up to £3,000 when buying a first home. You can keep paying in until November 2029 and claim the bonus until November 2030. The property price cap is £250,000, or £450,000 in London.

Help to Buy Equity Loan: England and Wales

Help to Buy: Equity Loan is closed to new applicants in England, but it is still open in Wales. For existing borrowers, there is no interest for the first five years, then 1.75% from year 6, plus a £1 monthly management fee.

First Homes: discount and income caps

In England, the First Homes scheme offers first-time buyers a home at 30% to 50% below market value. The income cap is £80,000 a year, rising to £90,000 in London.

Shared Ownership: shares, rent and staircasing

Shared Ownership lets you buy a share of a home worth between 10% and 75% of the full value, although the usual range is 25% to 75%, and you pay rent on the rest to a landlord. For new-build homes, the rent limit is 3% of the value of the landlord’s share, and most landlords charge 2.75%. Staircasing is covered in the separate shared ownership staircasing guide.

Right to Buy: discounts and the November 2024 caps

Right to Buy eligibility starts after three years as a public sector tenant, and the time does not have to be consecutive. For houses, the discount is 35% after three to five years, rising by 1% for each extra year; for flats, it is 50%, rising by 2% for each extra year. The maximum discount is the lower of 70% of the property value or the regional cap. From 21 November 2024, the caps are: London £16,000, except Barking & Dagenham and Havering at £38,000; South East £38,000; Eastern £34,000; South West £30,000; North West and West Midlands £26,000; Yorkshire & Humber and East Midlands £24,000; North East £22,000.

Key facts

Source: GOV.UK, Lifetime ISA — Guidance checked August 2026

Source: GOV.UK, Help to Buy ISA — Guidance checked August 2026

Source: GOV.UK - Help to Buy Equity Loan — Guidance checked August 2026

Source: GOV.UK - First Homes Scheme — Guidance checked August 2026