Harper Macleod helps Scottish government support 30 households a week through Help to Buy (Scotland) scheme

The Scottish government’s Help to Buy scheme has reached another milestone with the latest phase enabling more than 30 households a week to purchase a new build home.

Harper Macleod was appointed by the Scottish government to help administer the £195 million successor to its Help to Buy schemes.

The firm provides advisory and conveyancing services in relation to Scottish ministers’ interests in the scheme. The firm will also continue to administer post-sale work for transactions related to Help to Buy (Scotland) and the Help to Buy (Scotland) Small Developers Scheme.

Harper Macleod has provided property law services to the Scottish government on a range of shared equity schemes since 2007.

David McIndoe, partner at Harper Macleod, said: “We are delighted to play a part in such a high-profile and successful scheme. For almost a decade we’ve assisted the Scottish government as it has helped more than 20,000 households own their own home, and the experience we’ve built up allows us to bring the quality, efficiency and value necessary for such shared equity schemes to thrive.”

The £195 million Help to Buy (Scotland) Affordable Home Ownership scheme opened for applications in the spring, with the new funding specifically targeted at supporting up to 7,000 buyers across the country get onto or up the housing ladder.

Since its original launch in 2013, the initiative, which currently sees the Scottish government take an equity stake of up to 15 per cent in new homes up to the value of £230,000, has played a significant role in assisting potential purchasers to realise their ownership aspirations, as well as helping to increase the supply of much needed homes.

Local government and housing minister, Kevin Stewart, said: “Helping people access a good quality affordable home across all tenures is a priority for this government, and I am delighted that over 30 households each week are able to own their home through our Help to Buy (Scotland) Affordable New Homes and Small Developers schemes.

“Since 2007, we have helped over 22,000 households own their own home through our shared equity schemes, like Help to Buy. This year we will invest a further £160 million to support 5,000 more households to buy a home.”