The ‘Securing Futures’ report outlines the success and impact of the Welsh Government’s Help to Buy Wales equity loan scheme, ten years on from the opening of the scheme.

Using figures from the Welsh Government and consumer survey data, the report examines:

• The support provided to first-time buyers by Help to Buy Wales
• Returns to taxpayers from the scheme
• The social and economic benefits of Help to Buy Wales
• Public support for the scheme

HBF’s analysis outlines that:

• As of March 2024, over 14,000 households had been supported to buy a house using the Help to Buy Wales scheme, including almost 11,000 first-time buyer households.
• 46% of all loans have been repaid in full at a total value of £281.99 million, compared to an original value of £239.79 million. This is a return of over £40 million to the Welsh Government and an average uplift of 18% per equity loan.
• In the first nine years of the scheme, a quarter of newly completed homes were sold through Help to Buy Wales.
• On average, the scheme has supported 4,400 jobs and generated £240 million in economic activity every year.
• 78% of the Welsh public agree that a Government scheme to help first-time buyers should be in place.

The report also calls for the scheme to be renewed after its current expiration date in March 2025, and for the maximum purchase price to be increased to reflect growing affordability pressures since the scheme began in 2014.