The First Homes scheme: the discount, the price caps and what happens when you sell

Schemes at a glance

How does the First Homes discount work?

A First Home is sold to a first-time buyer for at least 30% less than its market value. The council can set a bigger discount, up to 50%. An independent surveyor values every home, so the discount is worked out on its real market value.

The price after the discount has a cap, which is higher in London. The council can set a lower cap. The cap applies only to the first sale by the developer, not to later sales. The current figures are on GOV.UK.

There is no rent to pay, unlike shared ownership. You own the whole home. You can also buy a First Home that someone else bought through the scheme before. Ask the estate agent if a resale home is a First Home: the same rules come with it.

Who can buy a First Home?

• You are 18 or over.
• You are a first-time buyer. If you buy with others, you must all be first-time buyers and apply together.
• Your household income before tax in the last tax year is within the scheme’s income cap, which is higher for a home in London (GOV.UK sets out the figures).
• You can get a mortgage for at least half the price.
• It will be your only or main home.

The council can add its own rules for the first 3 months a home is on sale. For example, it can give priority to key workers or people who already live in the area. After 3 months, those local rules fall away. Armed forces members, recent veterans and some of their families do not have to meet local key worker or local area rules.

The test of a first-time buyer is the same as for stamp duty relief. Check yours with our first-time buyer stamp duty calculator.

What does the council need from your conveyancer before you exchange?

1. Your application names us. The developer, or the estate agent on a resale, sends your application to the council. It must include your conveyancer’s name and contact details.
2. The council checks you are eligible and contacts the developer or agent, your mortgage adviser if you have one, and us.
3. We do the legal work as on any purchase, plus the First Homes papers. We check the planning agreement (a section 106 agreement) that makes the home a First Home, and explain its rules to you before you sign.
4. We ask the council if you can exchange. We do this once you have a mortgage offer and have signed the legal papers. The council then issues a certificate that you can be a First Homes owner.
5. Exchange and completion. Tell us at once if anything has changed, for example your income, before we exchange. After completion we register you at HM Land Registry. Your title will carry a restriction: no one can register a later sale or transfer (other than a mortgage) without a certificate from the council, or its conveyancer, that the First Homes rules have been met or do not apply.

A First Homes purchase is one of the things that can change our fee, and we give you a written, itemised quote before you instruct us.

How much stamp duty is due on a First Home?

Stamp duty is worked out on the price you pay after the discount, not on the market value. As a first-time buyer you pay nothing on the first £300,000 of the price, so many First Homes carry no stamp duty at all.

Wales has no First Homes scheme and no first-time buyer relief: see the Wales section. To check the relief rules for your own price, use the calculator.

Can you let out or sell a First Home later?

Letting. You can usually let the whole home for no more than 2 years in total while you own it. Tell the council first and check with your lender. The council can allow longer in some cases, for example a job move, the end of a relationship, leaving domestic abuse, redundancy, or caring for someone. You can let a room for as long as you like, if you still live there.

Selling as a First Home. You usually sell to someone who is eligible for First Homes, at the same percentage discount you had, worked out on the home’s value when you sell. Tell the council, use an estate agent who sells under the scheme, and get a RICS surveyor’s valuation. Example: you had 30% off and the home is now valued at £200,000. You can sell for up to £140,000.

Selling on the open market. If you cannot sell as a First Home for 6 months or more, or it would cause you severe difficulty, ask the council. If it agrees, you sell at full price and pay the council the same percentage of the sale price. The council can instead offer to buy the home at the discounted price, or ask you to try for 6 more months, after which it must let you sell on the open market. Example: you paid £175,000 for a £250,000 home (30% off) and later sell for £300,000. You pay the council £90,000.

Inheritance. You can leave the home in your will. The person who inherits it must follow the letting rules and live there, or they may need to sell.

What is Your First Home, and how is it different from First Homes?

Your First Home is a new government equity loan for first-time buyers of new-build homes in England. The government confirmed it in the Budget on 28 October 2026. The government says pre-registration will open by the end of December 2026, with applications from February 2027 and first sales from April 2027. You cannot apply yet.

With Your First Home you own the home from completion; the government is not a co-owner or your landlord. Full eligibility and repayment rules are due before applications open in February 2027.

Which first-time buyer schemes are open on 29 October 2026?

Every government scheme a first-time buyer may meet, with its status and the part your conveyancer plays. Checked on GOV.UK, GOV.WALES and the Budget 2026 documents on 29 October 2026.

Of 686 people who asked us to quote for buying, or for buying and selling, 43 were buying through shared ownership and 11 through Right to Buy. Of 377 first-time buyers who asked us to quote for buying only, 94 were using a Lifetime ISA (78) or a Help to Buy ISA (16) (website quote requests, 2 Sep–29 Oct 2026).

Are there First Homes or Your First Home schemes in Wales?

No. Both are England only. Wales has its own schemes, run by the Welsh Government:

• Help to Buy – Wales: an equity loan of up to 20% of the price on a new build from a registered builder, within the scheme’s price limit. You need a 5% deposit. It is open to first-time buyers and people moving home. Applications must be in by 31 March 2027.
• Homebuy – Wales: an equity loan of 30% to 50% for people who meet set criteria.
• Shared Ownership – Wales: buy 25% to 75% and pay rent on the rest.

Right to Buy ended in Wales in 2019. And Wales has Land Transaction Tax, with no relief for first-time buyers: use our Land Transaction Tax calculator.

43 of the 670 people who asked us to quote for buying only were buying a home in Wales (website quote requests, 2 Sep–29 Oct 2026).

Which of our fees apply to a scheme purchase?

Our fee range for buying a residential property is in the box below. Some schemes add a fixed-fee line on top, such as a new-build or leasehold home, or shared ownership: see our fees. A First Homes purchase is one of the things that can change the cost. Stamp Duty Land Tax (or Land Transaction Tax in Wales) and the HM Land Registry fee are government charges, kept apart from our fees.

We give you a written, itemised quote before you instruct us. More on conveyancing for first-time buyers.

Scheme rules change. The council, developer, lender or scheme decides if you qualify.

What happens next

• Conveyancing for first-time buyers
• First-time buyer stamp duty calculator
• Using a Lifetime ISA to buy your first home
• More guides, explained