Dacorum's £380k price limit revealed for new first-time buyer scheme
First-time buyers in Hemel Hempstead could benefit from a new Government scheme offering financial help towards purchasing a new-build home costing up to £380,000.
The Government has revealed the property price caps for its Your First Home scheme, which aims to help thousands of households across England onto the property ladder.
Dacorum has been given a £380,000 cap, meaning properties costing more than this will not qualify for the scheme.
The figure is lower than in several other Hertfordshire districts, including Watford, where the cap is £420,000, Three Rivers at £440,000 and St Albans at £515,000.
Under the scheme, eligible buyers will be able to purchase a new-build home with a deposit of at least 2.5 per cent of the purchase price.
They will also need a repayment mortgage from a participating lender, while the government will provide an equity loan worth 20 per cent of the property's purchase price, interest-free for five years.
For example, someone purchasing a £380,000 home with a 2.5 per cent deposit would need £9,500 towards the purchase.
The government equity loan would amount to £76,000, leaving £294,500 to be covered by a mortgage.
Buyers will normally need to be a first-time buyer, buying a new-build home in England, within the relevant local price cap, use the property as their main home and have a total annual household income of £110,000 or less outside London, or £140,000 or less within London.
Aneisha Beveridge, Connells group research director, said: “The level at which the caps have been set should give would-be first-time buyers access to a choice of both flats and smaller houses in most areas, ensuring healthy take-up of the scheme.
“While larger houses mostly sit above the price caps, this isn’t unreasonable for a scheme designed to support first-time buyers.
“In the short term, these figures show what existing stock can likely be sold using Your First Home, but longer term, the caps will start to shape what homes housebuilders decide to deliver.”
Applications for the new first-time buyer scheme are expected to open in February 2027, with the first sales anticipated in April.