Despite being set up to improve affordable home ownership, figures from the government revealed that less than 10 per cent of housing associations were offering the initiative. Speaking at Prime Minister’s questions, Jacqui Lait, Conservative MP for Beckenham, questioned the impact of the initiative.
Responding to the criticism, Housing Minister, Yvette Cooper, commented: “Social HomeBuy is a pilot scheme, as we have always said. The pilot concludes in March and we will then take decisions about how to take it forward. It is right to examine different, innovative ways to help people onto the ladder and to help first-time buyers (FTBs). I must say to Conservative members that they cannot help FTBs if they are not prepared to back the building of the new homes that Britain needs.”
However, James Carter, IFA at Independent James, insisted that in the current climate, aspiring home owners should look to more traditional ways to secure funding. He explained: “I always feel a slight sense of unease about these schemes as they are attempting to deal with a problem that possibly should be tackled at the core rather than at the third or fourth stage.
“If it is to get more people on the property ladder, then why is it that they can’t get on it in the first place? Redistribution of wealth has improved under Labour, but further strides need to be made.”
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