The Help to Buy Wales scheme will be extended until 2025, the Welsh Government has announced. The scheme, which no longer exists in England, has helped with the purchase of more than 13,400 homes since it was launched in 2014.
The scheme's extension was confirmed by Welsh Government finance minister Rebecca Evans ahead of a vote on the Welsh Government's final budget for the year. Ms Evans announced a £63m allocation in the budget to extend the scheme, saying: "The funding will assist Help to Buy to adapt to changes in the housing market, and address the impact of the economic climate on potential homeowners."
She added: "Close to £100m will be allocated towards measures to help people stay in their homes, and to support and create more social housing, aiming to avoid homelessness and repossessions."
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Climate change minister Julie James had already outlined her intentions to extent the scheme (which was due to end in March 2023) back in December, saying: "The Welsh Government wants to ensure support for potential new home-owners continues to be relevant and targeted at those who most need it, particularly in these economically challenging times."
But the scheme can only now be extended by the funding announced in the Draft Budget, which was voted through on Tuesday afternoon by a margin of 29 to 15, with 12 abstentions.
It is understood that the cap on the price of homes eligible for the scheme will be increased to £300,000, and each home will need to meet a minimum of Energy Performance Certificate B. People buying homes with Help to Buy only have to put down a 5% deposit and will receive a 20% shared equity loan, with the remaining 75% of the house's value covered by a normal mortgage.
The draft budget includes £227m for local government, including funding for schools and social care, and £165m extra for NHS Wales. Ms Evans added that "now is not the time" to add to the burden people face by raising income tax to pay for the budget, saying it would "would affect people who are already struggling with rising inflation and higher energy bills."
However, she said the Welsh Government wouldn't cap council tax rises as they were not "palpably excessive," saying it was important to give "autonomy" over council tax rates to local government.
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