The Chancellor’s Budget on 28 October 2026 includes welcome measures to help first-time buyers onto the property ladder, including the new Your First Home scheme. By allowing eligible buyers to purchase a new-build home with a deposit of just 2.5%, supported by a government equity loan, the scheme has the potential to make homeownership more accessible and provide a much-needed boost to demand for new homes. It represents an important step forward for the market, providing support that has been missing since the end of the Help to Buy scheme in 2023. We look forward to seeing its impact when the scheme launches in 2027.
The extent of its impact across the South East will, however, depend on the detail. Regional property price caps are yet to be announced and, in an area where prices can be higher than elsewhere in the country, these will be critical in determining how many buyers can benefit and how effectively the scheme supports local housing markets.
While the focus on new-build homes is positive for housebuilders, there is also an opportunity to stimulate activity across the wider housing market. Your First Home could help more first-time buyers take their first step towards homeownership, but people looking to sell an existing property before moving also need the confidence to make that next step. Providing greater certainty and confidence is important to creating a more active and sustainable market, where buyers and sellers both feel able to move forward with their plans.
For SME housebuilders, restoring buyer confidence is equally important. Recent research from the Home Builders Federation found that 69% of SME housebuilders identified wider housing market conditions as a barrier to delivering new homes, while 64% cited low buyer confidence. In the South East, 83.7% reported a negative outlook for the market. Measures that encourage buyers to commit to a purchase could therefore have benefits beyond individual households, helping smaller developers sell homes, plan ahead and invest with greater confidence in future developments.
We also welcome the Budget’s measures to support local high street businesses, with changes to business rates expected to benefit 70,000 local businesses. Independent shops and other small businesses help create vibrant, attractive places to live, and encouraging investment in local economies is an important part of building thriving communities.
Ultimately, Your First Home is a positive step towards helping more people move from renting to homeownership. The next priority should be to build on this momentum, giving existing homeowners the confidence to move, supporting buyer demand across the market and enabling SME housebuilders to invest in the high-quality homes and thriving places that communities need.
