By Jonathan Watts-Lay, Director, WEALTH at work
“With the current cost of living crisis putting pressure on household finances, it is now even more difficult than ever for first-time buyers to get on the property ladder. Therefore, it is extremely important for employers to offer their workforce as much support as possible.
There are various savings vehicles that can help employees save for a deposit such as ISAs or share schemes like Save As You Earn or Share Incentive plans. The Lifetime ISA (LISA) can be particularly helpful as it provides a guaranteed 25% bonus from the government. There are also a couple of variations of the ‘Help to Buy’ scheme that could be useful for some, including the mortgage guarantee scheme announced in the 2021 Budget, which offers lenders the option to purchase a guarantee on mortgages where a borrower has a deposit of only 5%.