Who can apply for Help to Buy, Wales?

Help to Buy, Wales is a Welsh Government shared equity loan that helps people buy a new build home with a smaller deposit. The government lends you up to 20% of the property's value, you put down at least 5%, and you take out a repayment mortgage for the remaining 75%. The loan is interest-free for the first five years.

You do not have to be a first-time buyer. The scheme is open to all home buyers who want to buy a new build home but may be constrained in doing so, and it is available to anyone living in Wales, whether individuals, couples or families¹. The home must be a new build from a builder registered with the scheme, priced at no more than £300,000³.

Applications must be submitted by 31 March 2027⁴. Since the scheme began on 2 January 2014, there have been 15,043 completions under it up to 30 September 2025⁵.

Who can apply: buyers of new build homes in Wales, not just first-time buyers

The most common misunderstanding about Help to Buy, Wales is that it is only for first-time buyers. It is not. Support is available to all home buyers, not just first-time buyers, who wish to purchase a new home but may be constrained in doing so². The scheme is open to anyone living in Wales, including individuals, couples and families¹.

What does limit who can use it is the type of property. The scheme is only available for purchases of new build homes through a developer registered with the Welsh Government⁶. Homes split into flats are not included, and homes that have been previously occupied, either by an owner occupier or a tenant before sale, may not be purchased with the scheme⁷. That rules out most of the second-hand market, and it also rules out new builds that have had a previous occupant.

There is also a rule about your existing home. You must not be renting out your existing home and buying a second home through the scheme³. The home you buy has to be your only home.

If you are comparing this with other Welsh schemes, the eligibility tests differ. Shared Ownership, Wales, for example, is aimed at first-time buyers, newly forming households, or people relocating for work to an area where prices do not allow them to buy a home suitable for their family size⁸. Help to Buy, Wales has no such first-time buyer test.

The property: new build, registered builder, up to £300,000

Three conditions apply to the home itself, and all three have to be met.

First, it must be a new build. The scheme is only available for purchases of new build homes through a developer registered with the Welsh Government⁶. A builder who is not registered with the scheme cannot sell you a home under it.

Second, the price cap is £300,000. You must be buying an eligible home with a maximum price of £300,000 from a builder who is registered with the scheme³. The maximum purchase price for an eligible property under the scheme is £300,000⁷. Independent guidance confirms the scheme is only available on properties priced up to £300,000⁹.

Third, the home must not have been lived in before. Homes which have been previously occupied either by an owner occupier or a tenant before sale may not be purchased with the scheme⁷.

The £300,000 cap matters because it sets the ceiling on the loan as well as the purchase. At the maximum price, a 20% equity loan is £60,000. The scheme provides a maximum equity loan of £60,000, which is 20% of the purchase price of the property⁵.

If you are buying in Wales, the property tax you pay is Land Transaction Tax rather than Stamp Duty, and that is a separate cost from the scheme. See Land Transaction Tax in Wales for how it works.

Deposit and mortgage: at least 5% down and a 75% repayment mortgage

The funding split is fixed. You need to be able to fund at least 80% of the property price through a combination of a repayment mortgage and a minimum deposit of 5% of the purchase price³. The scheme then provides an interest-free loan for the first five years, up to 20% of the property value¹.

In practice that means a deposit of at least 5%, a repayment mortgage of 75%, and an equity loan of up to 20%. The mortgage must be a first charge repayment mortgage with a qualifying lender³. Interest-only mortgages do not fit the scheme.

Most people who have used the scheme put down the minimum. Around two thirds, 64%, of all recipients of Help to Buy, Wales shared equity loans have provided the minimum 5% deposit since the scheme was introduced⁵. An earlier official figure put the share at 65%, with 19% providing between 5.1% and 10%¹¹. Industry statistics report that 65% of those who received a shared equity loan provided a 5% deposit, and put the number of households at 9,186¹².

A larger deposit reduces the size of the mortgage but does not change the equity loan percentage you can take. If you are working out what you can afford, see How much deposit do I need to buy a house?.

How much of the property's value can the equity loan cover?

The equity loan covers up to 20% of the property value¹. On a £300,000 home that is £60,000, which is the maximum the scheme provides⁵.

The remaining 80% comes from you: a deposit of at least 5% and a mortgage of 75%. The scheme does not cover fees, tax or moving costs, and it does not reduce the price you pay for the home.

The 20% figure is specific to Help to Buy, Wales. Other Welsh schemes work differently. Homebuy, Wales offers an equity loan of between 30% and 50% for those who meet specific criteria to buy a property¹³. Help to Stay, Wales, which is aimed at homeowners already struggling with a mortgage rather than buyers, may provide an equity loan of up to 49% of your property's market value¹⁴. These are different schemes with different purposes, and eligibility for one does not mean eligibility for another.

If you want to see how the Welsh scheme compares with the shared ownership route, Shared Ownership or Help to Buy, Wales: Which Suits You sets the two side by side.

Rules you must keep: no subletting and no second homes

Two restrictions run for as long as you hold the equity loan.

You must not sub-let any part of the house you are buying through the scheme³. That covers the whole property, not just a spare room, and it applies whether you are letting to a lodger or to a tenant.

You must not be renting your existing home and buying a second home through the scheme³. The home you buy with the loan has to be the one you live in.

These mirror the rules on other Welsh home ownership schemes. Shared Ownership, Wales requires that you do not sub-let any part of the home being bought through the scheme⁸. Help to Stay, Wales states that you cannot apply if you own or part-own any other property¹⁴.

If you are thinking about letting the property out later, Subletting a Home Bought with an Equity Loan explains where the line falls.

How long is the equity loan interest-free?

Five years. There is no interest on your equity loan for the first five years, which the Welsh Government describes as reducing financial pressure while you settle into your new home¹. Pay back your entire loan within the first five years and you will pay zero interest¹.

After the interest-free period ends, interest applies. The independent evaluation of the Help to Buy equity loan scheme in England, published in September 2026, records that the equity loan was interest free for the first 5 years, with interest starting from 1.75% of the original loan amount and rising annually with a link to inflation¹⁵. The Welsh scheme follows the same shared equity structure.

Two things are worth being clear about. The interest is charged on the loan amount, not on the value of the home, so it does not rise simply because your property has gone up in value. And the interest-free period runs from completion, not from the date you apply.

If you want the detail on when the clock starts and what changes, When Interest Starts on a Help to Buy Equity Loan covers it.

Can I repay the equity loan early?

Yes. You can repay the loan before you sell your home, in which case you will repay based on the value of your home at that time¹⁶. That means the amount you repay is not fixed at what you borrowed: it moves with the value of the property.

There are two ways to pay it down. You can pay off at least 10% of your home's current value, or you can pay the full amount in one go¹. Partial repayments below that threshold are not available.

The timing matters for cost. Pay back your entire loan within the first five years and you will pay zero interest¹. Repaying after that point means interest has already started to accrue.

Because the repayment is based on the value at the time, a rise in your home's value increases what you owe on the loan. That is the trade-off of a shared equity loan: the government shares in the upside as well as helping with the purchase. How do I repay my Help to Buy Wales equity loan early? sets out the process.

Do I need a specific solicitor or conveyancer?

Yes, and this is a condition rather than a preference. Applicants must use a solicitor or conveyancer who has undertaken Help to Buy, Wales training¹⁷. To access a Help to Buy Wales loan, customers must instruct a conveyancer who is listed on the scheme's website¹⁷. The list consists of conveyancers who have completed Help to Buy Wales' specific training requirements¹⁷.

The practical effect is that you cannot simply use the solicitor your family has always used, unless they are on the list. It is worth checking before you appoint anyone, because switching partway through a purchase costs time and money. Conveyancing: the legal work when you buy a home explains what the conveyancer does at each stage.

Applications close on 31 March: how to apply before the deadline

Applications for the Help to Buy, Wales scheme must be submitted by 31 March 2027⁴. The Welsh Government has confirmed that Help to Buy, Wales will continue until 31 March 2027, giving up to 400 more households the opportunity to purchase a new build home with a smaller deposit¹⁹.

There is a discrepancy in the published material about the end date. Independent guidance states that the scheme will run until September 2026⁹, while the Welsh Government's own guidance and press material give 31 March 2027⁴. Anyone planning to use the scheme should work to the earlier date if they want a margin, and check the current position before relying on either.

The application route is through the Welsh Government. Visit GOV.WALES for full details and to apply for Help to Buy, Wales¹.

The steps in order:

1. Check you meet the eligibility conditions, including the £300,000 price cap and the registered builder requirement³.
2. Instruct a solicitor or conveyancer from the scheme's trained list¹⁷.
3. Arrange a repayment mortgage with a qualifying lender for 75% of the property value³.
4. Have your deposit of at least 5% ready³.
5. Submit your application before 31 March 2027⁴.

If you are still weighing up whether to buy a new build at all, Buying a new build home covers what to check and when.

What happens if you fall behind

A missed payment does not disappear. If you are going to miss a payment, you will need to pay this back when you come to repay your equity mortgage²⁰.

There is a formal trigger point. A default notice will be issued to a customer 180 days after an equity mortgage goes into arrears where there has been no engagement or co-operation from the customer, or where the customer has not satisfied any arrears management agreements made²¹. In other words, the scheme expects contact: the 180-day clock is about whether you have engaged, not simply whether you have missed payments.

If you are struggling, Help to Stay, Wales offers financial support to eligible Welsh homeowners who are struggling to pay their existing mortgage or at risk of falling behind with their mortgage¹⁴. Independent guidance confirms that in Wales, if you are struggling to pay your mortgage, you may qualify for the Help to Stay scheme²².

Free, impartial help is available. Citizens Advice covers the basics of buying and selling a home and where to get advice²³, and Independent Age sets out the options for problems paying your mortgage²². If you have a complaint about how the scheme has handled your case, the Welsh Government publishes a complaints route¹⁸.