First time buyers initiative in Kent

First time buyers are finding it harder to get on the property ladder than at any time since 1991, a fact that has not been lost on George Wimpey South East and Wayne Hemingway who are collaborating on The Bridge, the pioneering regeneration development transforming a 264-acre brownfield site in Dartford into a dynamic new community.

To ensure first time buyers are part of the social fabric at The Bridge, George Wimpey has teamed up with English Partnerships to offer a number of properties for purchase through the new First Time Buyers Initiative (FTBI).

Homes at The Bridge, designed by Wayne and Gerardine Hemingway and architects Broadway Malyan, will benefit from Dutch ‘homezone’ principles which have been applied to courtyards and streets to encourage the shared use of outside space and to minimise the impact of cars, creating interesting and individual homes within safe, friendly neighbourhoods. Designed in a range of contemporary styles, with a focus on landscape, gardens and individuality, the new homes will be available on a range of different tenures. All homes will receive EcoHomes ‘good’ ratings.

Apart from looking good and functioning well, all homes feature technological advancements such as wall mounted flat screens that give real-time access to the innovative Fastrack bus service which runs through the site and train information as well as local weather, local events and opportunities.

Through the FTBI, part of the government’s HomeBuy programme, first time buyers purchase a home with an affordable mortgage that must be a minimum 50 per cent of the full purchase price. The remaining contribution is provided by English Partnerships. When owners sell their FTBI home, they will repay English Partnerships a share of the total sale proceeds. So, for example, if the assistance to buy was originally 25 per cent of the purchase price the repayment will be 25 per cent of the total value when it is sold.

A total of 29 homes at The Bridge will be available through the FTBI and will cost from £175,000 for a one-bedroom apartment and from £235,000 for a two-bedroom home of which some first time buyers would pay half using a combination of savings and borrowings. Some buyers will qualify for lower levels of assistance dependent on their circumstances. Completion for the first apartments is expected to be October 2007.

Lee Monk, Sales and Marketing Director, George Wimpey South East, commented, “We are creating a diverse community at The Bridge and homes for first time buyers are an essential part of that picture. By offering these homes under the FTBI we are helping people who couldn’t otherwise get onto the property ladder to become homeowners. We have allocated a limited number of homes in phase one at The Bridge for first time buyers, and the demand has been enormous.”

Under the FTBI, buyers hold 100 per cent of the property title and pay fees to English Partnerships on its contribution only after three years of owning the property. People can choose to ‘staircase’ their property and repay English Partnerships when they are able. When buyers come to sell, they pay English Partnerships back the percentage contribution that was provided, thus sharing in the capital gains of the property.

Applicants who are public sector key workers or other first time buyers who cannot afford to buy, with a minimum income of £25,700 for singles and £29,900 for couples and meeting all the government’s HomeBuy and FTBI criteria are eligible and should apply through the HomeBuy Agent, locally based housing association, Moat. On the launch weekend of June 30th, pre-approved applicants will be able to visit The Bridge and reserve the available homes.

Duncan Innes, the English Partnerships Director responsible for the First Time Buyers Initiative said, “We are offering a golden opportunity for first time buyers who have been priced out of the property market.

“We all know that there is an increasing gap between earnings and house prices and by reserving affordable new homes exclusively for first time buyers, English Partnerships aims to help as many people as possible to take their first steps towards full home ownership.”

For more information about the FTBI at The Bridge, visit Thebridgedartford.co.uk.