Zoopla reveals the UK’s Help to Buy hotspots

6th December 2019

 

• Wakefield is crowned the England’s Help to Buy hotspot with the most buyers

• In London, the Borough of Tower Hamlets saw the most Help to Buy loans

• Zoopla launches new Help to Buy calculator shows what payments will be from day one and after five years when interest-free period on equity loan expires

 

Zoopla, the UK’s most comprehensive property portal has revealed for the first time where in the UK the most Help to Buy loans have been secured since the scheme’s launch in 2013. The data marks the launch of Zoopla’s new Help to Buy calculator, which empowers first-time buyers to understand their affordability for the government scheme.

 

By analysing the equity loans that have been secured in each local authority Zoopla can reveal that Wakefield in West Yorkshire, where the average house price for a new home stands at £221,740, is England’s biggest Help to Buy hotspot. 

 

In second place is Wiltshire (unitary authority) where the average price for a new-build home is £333,760 with County Durham in third (£196,783 average value).

 

In the 12 months to Q2 2019, Wakefield continued to be the most popular area for Help to Buy loans, followed in second place by Central Bedfordshire where the average price of a new build home is £389,884. In the same 12-month period, the Borough of Tower Hamlets (average new-build home £588,342) was home to the most Help to Buy loans in London followed by Barnet (£520,408).

 

Zoopla also analysed the year-on-year change to the amount of Help to Buy loans being secured and found that the Borough of Waltham Forest, where the average price of a new-build is £422,879 was home to the biggest increase (241.3%). Meanwhile the local authority of Havant in Hampshire saw the biggest decrease in Help to Buy loans (-72%), falling from 65 to 18.

 

Zoopla’s Help to Buy calculator

 

By entering their household income, preferred mortgage term and interest rate, Zoopla’s Help to Buy calculator allows first-time buyers to work out how much is required for the 5% deposit, as well as their maximum affordability, estimated monthly mortgage repayment, and the monthly charges they will face after five years when the interest-free period on the equity loan expires. 

 

A household with a combined income of £60,000 for example could afford a property of up to £360,000, with £18,000 required for the deposit and an estimated monthly mortgage of £1,066 - rising by £105 when the buyer starts paying back the government loan after  five years.

 

Laura Howard, Consumer Expert at Zoopla, said: “Whilst it might be presumed that first-time buyers only use Help to Buy in markets with stretched affordability such as London, our analysis shows that its popularity in fact spans the entire country. 

 

“With Zoopla’s also recently revealing that Help to Buy has enabled a number of first- time buyers to get onto the ladder with larger, more desirable properties, it is likely that the scheme will remain popular.

 

With this in mind, Zoopla’s new calculator enables those who are actively considering using Help to Buy both to understand the process and their own affordability before searching for their ideal home.”

 

Most Help to Buy loans (All time)

 

 

Most Help to Buy loans (12 months until (and including) Q2 2019)

 

 

Biggest increase of Help to Buy loans YoY

 

 

Biggest decrease of Help to Buy loans YoY

 

 

 

- Ends -

For further information, please contact PR Team on pr@zoopla.co.uk or +44 (0)20 3873 8770.

Notes to Editors

Zoopla analysed Help to Buy guarantee scheme quarterly statistics by HM Treasury.

Average new-build home values based on price for the local authority/borough accurate as of 29th November 2019 from Land Registry. 

 

For further information:

Tim Vooght, Zoopla 

0203 873 8770 

pr@zoopla.co.uk 

 

About Zoopla

The Zoopla Limited property division includes some of the UK's leading property portal, software, marketing and data insights brands that help property professionals market their properties, promote their brand, make informed decisions and manage their business efficiently. Our websites and apps attract over 50 million visits per month and over 25,000 business partners use our range of services.

 

• Zoopla is the UK's most comprehensive property portal, helping consumers research the market and find their next home by combining hundreds of thousands of property listings with market data and local information. 

• PrimeLocation is one of the UK's leading property websites, helping house-hunters in the middle / upper tiers of the market to find their dream home from the top estate and letting agents and property developers.

• SmartNewHomes is the UK's leading website dedicated exclusively to new builds, helping buyers understand the market and search for new build homes from all the leading property developers across the country.

• Hometrack and Calcasa are leading providers of automated property valuations and statistical property market insights in the UK and the Netherlands to partners including mortgage lenders, developers, investors, government agencies, housing associations and others.

• Alto, Jupix and Expert Agent are some of the leading cloud-based estate agency and property management software systems used by thousands of property professionals across the UK for the day-to-day management of inventory, marketing and communications.

• PropertyFile and MoveIt are innovative tools used by estate agents to improve communication and efficiency with their customers and to allow them to generate additional revenue streams via referrals.

• TechnicWeb specialises in designing, developing, hosting and operating fully-responsive websites for the property sector.

• Ravensworth is a leading provider of print and design solutions to estate agencies and developers, offering a comprehensive range of products and services for every stage of the property marketing journey from listing through to post-sale.

About Zoopla

Hello. We're Zoopla. A property website and app.

We know you're not just looking for a place to live. You're looking for a home.

Yeah, we've got over a million properties for you to browse.

Tools that let you filter them in all kinds of clever ways.

And reliable house price estimates, so you can be sure you aren't paying over the odds.

But we know you're looking for more than that.

Because that first flat won't just be a 'great investment opportunity'.

It'll be the feeling of starting out on your own.

That extra bedroom won't just mean another £20K on the re-sale price, it'll mean having your sister over to stay.

And that bungalow won't just be a way to release some equity, it will be a chance to spend more time with the grandkids.

We know that searching for a home is about more than just checking its price, location and features (important as all those things are).

What really matters is how it makes you feel.

We know what a home is really worth.

So let us help you find yours.

Zoopla is part of Zoopla Limited which was founded in 2007.

Zoopla Limited, The Cooperage, 5 Copper Row, London, SE1 2LH
Registered in England and Wales with Company No. 06074771
VAT Registration number: 191 2231 33
Data Protection number: Z9972266

Back to Press releases