A home of your own

A recent survey has highlighted the growing trend of people living with friends and family because they can’t afford a home of their own. According to Abbey Mortgages, the number of 18-34 year olds saving cash by living rent free with other people has risen threefold since last year, with the figure now around 1.6 million.

More than 300,000 people in the 35-54 age group are also doing the same but Orbit First Step says this needn’t be the case.

Sales and Marketing Manager, Karen Coleman said: “Many of these people simply do not realise that there are schemes available to help them get onto the property ladder. Unfortunately, people often assume they are not eligible for our assistance when in fact we are able to help a wide range of people, in a variety of different domestic situations, to move into their dream home. You may be surprised to know that we can actually help people with a household income up to a maximum of £60,000!”

Orbit First Step has helped hundreds of individuals, couples and families into home ownership – whether they are first time buyers, Key Workers, or people finding themselves in need of a new home after a relationship breakdown as well as those needing to upsize or downsize due to a change in circumstances.

As the largest HomeBuy Agent in England, Orbit First Step acts as a first point of contact for families and single households in Norfolk and Suffolk, Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire; Coventry and Warwickshire; Hereford and Worcestershire; Staffordshire and Shropshire; and Birmingham, Solihull and the Black Country that are seeking to buy a home through a range of affordable home ownership products.

Orbit First Step’s role as a Local HomeBuy Agent is to first help applicants to think about their housing options and assist them in making the right choice to meet their housing needs, before establishing whether they meet eligibility criteria and assessing their financial circumstances to ensure that they can afford home ownership in the long term.

There are a variety of schemes available to help people make the move. These include:

Some of the schemes available to help people into homeownership include:

New Build HomeBuy
This part buy, part rent scheme enables purchasers to buy a minimum 25 per cent share in a property. Most purchasers raise a mortgage to purchase their share, and then pay a subsidised rent on the remaining share. Purchasers can buy additional shares in the future if they wish, meaning that one day they could be the outright owner with no further rent to pay.

Rent to HomeBuy
This scheme allows you to move into the property you want to purchase straight away as a tenant, with a view to purchasing it in the future under the New Build HomeBuy scheme. Rental is set at 20 per cent less than the current market rental rate, enabling you to save up for a deposit and Orbit First Step will even match the savings made by buyers whilst renting the property – effectively doubling the level of deposit they can put down on the property.

Intermediate rent
This option offers you chance to rent a brand new refurbished property at a subsidised rent. The rent charged is normally 20-30 per cent lower than what you would expect to pay for a similar property in the same area.

HomeBuy Direct
This scheme allows you to purchase a home on selected new build developments with assistance of equity loans up to 30 per cent of the property value.

For more information, log on to Orbithomebuyagents.co.uk.