A total of 531,507 property completions have been supported by the Help to Buy: ISA scheme since it launched in 2015, new Treasury figures have shown.

Government data, which covers the period from the scheme’s launch in December 2015 to September 2022, showed that 695,150 bonuses have been paid through the scheme, totalling £824m, with an average bonus value of £1,185.

The highest number of property completions with the support of the scheme is in the North West, Yorkshire and the Humber, while the lowest numbers have been in the Northern Ireland and Wales.

According to the figures published by the Treasury, the mean value of a property purchased through the scheme is sitting at £176,828, which compares to an average first-time buyer house price of £245,350, and a national average house price of £294,559. They also show that the median age of a first-time buyer in the scheme is 28 compared to a national first-time buyer median age of 30.

Commenting on the data, senior personal finance analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, Sarah Coles, said that first-time buyers have been “hamstrung” by the Help to Buy: ISA limit on property values.

“House prices have soared 44% since the scheme was introduced – leaving the £250,000 limit in the dust,” Coles commented.

“The savings scheme could become worthless for thousands of savers, and although the Lifetime ISA limit is much higher, unless the government rethinks how these limits are set – over time it risks a similar fate

“Outside London, you can only buy a property worth up to £250,000 with a Help to Buy ISA, and within London you can only spend up to £450,000. Both have fallen way behind average house prices, and with the average first time buyer price over £245,000, it risks eclipsing that too.

“Since the scheme was launched in 2015, house prices have climbed 44%, while the limit hasn’t budged. It means there are only three of nine regions in England where you could buy the average property with a Help to Buy: ISA – the North East, North West and Yorkshire and the Humber.”

Coles added: “The government needs to reconsider the limits on both the Help to Buy: ISA, and the Lifetime ISA. One sensible option would be to link them to house price inflation, so buyers have the security of knowing that however long they save for, and however house prices move in the interim, they will be protected.”

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