he average asking price for a home in England is now 5.5 per cent higher than this time last year. However, while house prices continue to soar, the government have announced long term plans to enable first-time buyers to step onto the property ladder, with just a five percent deposit.

In contrast, from April 2021, new price caps are being introduced to the current Help to Buy scheme across England, which could limit perspective homeowners ability to do so.

New research from money.co.uk has revealed that the average price of a new build home within 13 cities across the country are significantly higher than their regional price cap: https://www.money.co.uk/guides/new-help-to-buy-price-caps

Findings reveal that cities affected by the new regional price caps span all regions of the country. Cambridge is the city where first time buyers are set to struggle the most to purchase a home as the average new build home costs £606,151.

This is almost £200,000 more than the price that the government has capped the scheme within the cities region (The East of England). Second on the list is the Yorkshire city of Ripon (+£120,324), followed by York (+£117,519) and Bath (+£111,002).

Overall new build homes in one in four (26%) cities across the country have an average new build house cost above their regional price cap.

Furthermore, money.co.uk have researched the most popular places in the country for first time buyers to invest in a property through the scheme since it began. Insights reveal that a third of Help to Buy hotspots across the country are to be negatively impacted by the restrictions.

Out of all locations in England, Central Bedfordshire has been the most popular place in the country for first-time buyers to invest in a property through the scheme since it began.

However, the average price of new build homes in Central Bedfordshire are in fact +£1,234 higher than the £407,400 price cap being introduced in the region in April 2021.

Additionally, four other local authorities among the 15 most popular Help to Buy locations are estimated to be negatively impacted by the new price cap being introduced. Leeds (+£19,355), Cheshire East (+103,304), Cheshire West and Chester (+£62,747) and South Gloucestershire (+£4,270).

Methodology

Money.co.uk analysed the cost of a new home within various locations of England, using the UK House Price Index.

The personal finance experts then compared the average house price to the regional price cap, to understand which areas of England hold the average price of a new home higher than the regional price cap being introduced in April 2021.