A total of 6,535 mortgages were completed with the support of the government’s mortgage guarantee scheme in the period between its launch in April last year and September, new Treasury figures have revealed.

The total value of these mortgages supported by the scheme was £1.2bn, with 84% of the purchases made by first-time buyers.

According to the data, the mean value of a property purchased or remortgaged through the government scheme was £196,702, which compares to a national average house price of £269,945.

Commenting on the latest figures mortgage expert at Quilter, Karen Noye, said the figures suggest the scheme has not been as successful as the government may have hoped.

“The first set of data about the mortgage guarantee scheme was disappointing with just 812 mortgages using the scheme but this was understandable given it had only been in play for a matter of months and many buyers may have not even completed yet,” Noye commented.

“However, the most recent set of data, which looks at the six months from April to September, shows that just 6,535 mortgages have been completed using the scheme. This pales in comparison to the number of first-time buyers looking to get a foot on the property ladder.

“The data does show that the number of people using the mortgage guarantee scheme picked up in September so future releases may show more people taking advantage of 95% LTV mortgages. However, for the moment the scheme does not look to be the success the government might have hoped.”

The Treasury also published statistics for the Help to Buy: ISA scheme, and revealed that a total of 460,567 property completions have been supported by the scheme since it launched in December 2015.

These figures also showed that 604,720 bonuses have been paid through the scheme – totalling £674m – with an average bonus value of £1,115.

The Treasury stated that the mean value of a property purchased through the initiative is £175,680, which compares to an average first-time buyer house price of £225,607, and a national average house price of £269,945. Around 71% of completions were for properties in the lower value bands of £200,000 or less, while just 7% of completions were on properties valued above £250,000.

Furthermore, the Treasury also reported that the median age of a first-time buyer using this scheme is 28, which compares to a national first-time buyer median age of 30.

Commenting, interactive investor senior personal finance analyst, Myron Jobson, said: “It would be unfair to call the Help to Buy ISA a failure, but it would be a stretch to call it a success.

“Every little helps when it comes to purchasing a home, but the average bonus of £1,115 barely covers home survey and legal fees as well as other costs associated with buying a property.

Director, new homes financial services at LSL Property Services, Craig Hall, added: “Looking ahead, we expect to see significant change for the new-build market in 2022, particularly as we edge closer to the end of the Help to Buy scheme in March next year.

“The number of people using Help to Buy is already decreasing, following the changes to the scheme last year – regional price caps and first-time buyers only – with some housebuilders seeing up to a 50% drop in transactions using the scheme.

“With many developers forward selling their new homes due to demand combined with challenges securing materials and skilled labour, it’s possible that a post-Help to Buy market will emerge as early as Q2 2022 on some developments.”

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