We got £19k free cash for our deposit on £375k first home with little-known scheme – how you can too

FIRST-TIME buyers Maya and Charlie snaffled their home thanks to a little-known scheme that added thousands to their deposit.  

Harrods content creator Maya Prever and videographer Charlie Harris got the keys to their brand new, two-bed apartment in May.

The couple had been saving for a home while living with their parents.

Charlie, 27, started putting cash aside in 2015 when they got together, while Maya, 24, began squirrelling away money three years ago.

With it so hard to get on the housing ladder, Charlie and Maya leapt at the chance to get £18,750 added to their deposit for free, thanks to the Fairview top-up deposit scheme.

This plan gives first-time buyers a much-needed boost if they go through with a purchase on one of Fairview’s new-build London and Home Counties properties.

To qualify for the extra 5%, potential buyers must have saved a 10% deposit.

Maya and Charlie only became aware of the top-up programme after showing interest in the Brentwood Acres flat.

They needed to move fast, proving they had enough money to cover a 10% deposit and getting a solicitor within 48 hours.

Charlie and Maya got their mortgage agreement in principle in mid-March.

They viewed the flat a week later. It was just one of five properties they saw in total.

On 6 May, Charlie and Maya got the keys to their new home and moved in, the whole process taking less than eight weeks.

If Fairview’s scheme isn’t helpful to you, there are others available that will give you a helping hand up the property ladder.

Buyers with a small deposit of 5% can use the government’s mortgage guarantee scheme to get a 95% loan-to-value (LTV) mortgage.

The initiative was originally due to finish at the end of 2022 but has been extended by another year until December 31, 2023.

Or the Help to Build scheme offers an equity loan to help you build a home or convert a previously commercial building.

And the First Homes scheme means prospective first-time buyers in England can get homes at a 30% to 50% discounted rate compared to market price.

But, if the homeowner decides to sell the property down the line, the discount on the new value will be made available to any future buyer too.

We spoke to Maya about how their dream of being homeowners became a reality for The Sun’s My First Home series.

Tell us about your home

We have a fabulous two-bed, two-bathroom apartment with a private balcony and a parking space, which is a real bonus.

We fell in love with how “new” everything was, knowing all the appliances hadn’t been used before.

It also happened to be that the new-build square-footage was much larger than the older properties we visited which made such a difference.

I love how quiet it is here, the development itself, as well as the sound-proofing in the flat. The bedrooms are really large.

Our second one’s perfect for Charlie and me to work from home without feeling too cramped.

I love the large windows as it brings in a lot of natural light.

How did you decide on the location?

Charlie and I are both from Essex, although not Brentwood, and we wanted to be near family.

We feel quite settled already, but we’re looking forward to exploring the area further.

We’ve already enjoyed lots of walks nearby, there seem to be loads of walking trails and forest paths within walking distance of the development.

I love that we’re slightly out in the countryside but can easily walk to Brentwood High Street, which really has everything you could ever need.

We’re able to enjoy the buzz of it, without feeling right on top of it – the balance is perfect.

How much was it?

We paid £375,000 for the flat, having got the 10% deposit of £37,500 together between the two of us.

We got an extra £18,750 added to our deposit through the Fairview top-up deposit scheme, because we bought a new property on the Brentwood Acres estate.

Although Fairview offered us a mortgage through their people, we used a broker recommended to us.

This meant using part of the money we had available to cover a shortfall, as Skipton Building Society wouldn’t offer us a mortgage for the full amount needed unless we stumped up around £10k.

Fortunately, our parents stepped in to cover most of the extra money needed.

We did the rest and we got a two-year, fixed-rate mortgage at 4.93% through Skipton Building Society.

How did you save for it?

Charlie is great at saving and puts a little amount away each month until he has £31,500 for the deposit.

He raised this sum from his salary and through his own weekend freelance work, producing videos for everyone from estate agents and vegan food outlets to live music for bands.

He still does the freelancing on top of his day job.

I struggled a little more to save as I was earning less.

I also have to confess I enjoy spending money on things like clothes.

Even so, I managed to save through a side hustle I ran for a couple of years.

By selling my abstract art and homeware through my own website and taking commissions through my social media accounts, I was able to raise around £7,000 in two years.

I also saved £2,000 of my salary and took part in market research focus groups, which paid around £100 a time.

We were also helped by our parents. Mine contributed £6,500, of which £3,540 was a gift and the rest we’ll repay.

Charlie’s parents gave us £3,000 as a present.

This money covered the extra cash downpayment we needed to get our Skipton mortgage.

How did you furnish it?

We had a couple of desks and a chest of drawers from our parents’ homes.

The rest we bought new thanks to home-warming gifts from friends and family.

What advice would you give to other first-time buyers?

We’d set our hearts on older properties when we started looking, but the cherry on the cake was the attractive incentives that come with a new-build.

There’s no hassle with chains or seller’s solicitors, and their fees.

Be prepared to make compromises as you will never have the perfect home.

Once you move in, it will all feel worth it, and you’ll forget about everything else.

Also, start saving sooner. There are a lot more expenses than just purchasing the home.