Do I qualify as a first time home buyer?
Find out the official definition of a first time buyer and whether you qualify.
Last updated on
Jan 30, 2026 7:19
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Getting that first foot on the property ladder is a big step. And while there’s no denying that it’s harder than it used to be, if you do your research, there are lots of extra incentives and help for first-time buyers out there. The question is: do you qualify?
Let’s take a look at what it means to be a first-time buyer in the UK.
It’s there in the name, right? A first-time home buyer is someone who’s trying to buy a house or flat for the first time.
But if you ask the home-builders, the mortgage lenders, and the government, the definition of a first-time buyer is ever-so-slightly more nuanced.
First-time buyers have never gone through the home-buying process before, and don’t own a residential property (a house or a flat) with their name on the title deed, which they could sell to pay for their new home.
You can be a first-time buyer no matter how old you are and no matter what your income is (although a higher income will exclude you from some of the help available for first-time buyers). But the deposit you put down on the home has to be from savings, a gift, or your inheritance, and not from selling a property.
There are a few catches. For example, if you inherit a house or a flat, even though you didn’t buy it, you no longer count as a first-time buyer. Buying jointly is another tricky area: you both have to be first-time buyers, otherwise it doesn’t count. Below we’ve listed the main areas you need to know about.
It’s difficult for first-time buyers to get on the property ladder because they have to pay their home loan deposit from their savings alone, rather than using money from the sale of their current home.
When you consider that it’s normal to pay a 10% mortgage deposit, and the average house price was £269,735 in July 2025, you might have to save around £27,000 before you can think about buying a house. This can take years of hard work.
Because of this, there are a few different schemes in place to help first-time buyers pay for the house they need. These have different eligibility criteria, and different parts of the UK have their own rules. We’ve summarised these below, but we’ve also created a full guide to the benefits of being a first-time buyer.
Stamp duty is a tax you pay when you buy a home. First-time buyers pay less stamp duty than other buyers - this is called “stamp duty relief”.
You have to pay the tax in one lump, on top of the value of the property, and it’s due 14 days after completion (so two weeks after your new home becomes yours).
The rate you pay depends on how much the house is worth and whether or not you’ve bought property before. At the time of writing, first-time buyers in England and Northern Ireland don’t have to pay any stamp duty on properties worth less than £300,000 (for everyone else, the threshold is £125,000). The threshold for the equivalent tax is lower for first-time buyers in Scotland (£175,000). There’s no first-time buyer relief in Wales, but there’s no tax due on the first £225,000 of the property price.
For properties worth between £300,001 and £500,000, first-time buyers will pay the standard 5% stamp duty, but it’s nice to know that you’ve had a head start. Stamp duty relief applies no matter whether you’re buying a new-build home or an existing one, as long as the property is worth less than £500,000.
As well as stamp duty relief, there’s additional help for people who want to buy new-build properties.
Thresholds and rates are correct at the time of writing and may change in future.
In a shared ownership scheme, you buy part of the property, and a housing association buys the rest. You then pay your mortgage (which will be smaller and hopefully come with a lower interest rate) and some rent on the part of the house that isn’t yours.
Over time, you can buy more shares in the property until you get to 100%. This is known as “staircasing”.
However, if the housing market dips, you might find yourself in negative equity, meaning the share of property you own is no longer worth what you paid for it. Because of this, it’s always best to do your research.
To qualify, you need to:
It’s also worth noting that Scotland prioritises shared ownership properties for people who would otherwise find it difficult to own their own homes. This includes applicants with disabilities, members of the armed forces, people aged over 60, and people on a low income.
In a rent-to-buy tenancy, you sign up to live in a property and pay a reduced rate of rent for a fixed amount of time. As a guide, that offer might be a 20% discount for five years. At the end of the contract, you’re then expected to buy the property (or another property, if this one doesn’t work for you anymore) using the money you saved on the rent as your deposit.
The scheme isn’t available outside England. Wales has closed its scheme to new landlords, but some properties might still be available; there’s no scheme in Scotland and a different one in Northern Ireland.
If you have a public sector landlord (that is, you live in a house that’s owned by the local authority) you can approach your landlord to say that you’re interested in becoming the owner of the house.
With Right to Buy, you’ll get a discount on what the home is worth (to reflect the fact that you’ve been paying rent). This starts at a 35% discount (50% for flats), and you then get an additional reduction of 1% (2% for flats) for every year you’ve lived there once you’ve been in the property for five years.
Just remember, this scheme is only available in England and Northern Ireland.
If you qualify as a first-time buyer, it pays to do your research on exactly what help you qualify for and which first-time buyer mortgage might be right for you.
A good place to start is with our free mortgage calculator. It’s always helpful to know just how much money you can afford to borrow before you start house hunting.
And whether you’re a first-time buyer or not, you can use Habito’s complete home-buying service to make your property purchase even easier!
If you want an expert with you on the journey, Habito can help. Our mortgage advisors can answer your questions, point you in the direction of schemes you’re eligible for, and help you find the best deal for your first-time-buyer mortgage.
Habito is an online mortgage broker. We help first-time buyers understand their options, compare mortgages from across the market, and apply for a mortgage that suits their circumstances.
While we explain government schemes and first-time buyer incentives, eligibility rules are set by the government, lenders, or housing providers and not by Habito. Whether you qualify, and what you’re offered, will always depend on your personal circumstances and the lender’s criteria.
Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage
Habito is a trading name of Hey Habito Ltd, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Mortgage advice is provided subject to your circumstances.
What’s the official definition of a first-time buyer in the UK?
The taxman’s definition is that none of the people buying the house or flat has ever owned a home before. Lenders’ definitions vary and some are a little more generous.
What happens if one person is a first-time buyer and the other isn’t?
If you’re buying a home jointly, and one of you isn’t a first-time buyer, you won’t qualify for the special first-time buyer stamp duty rate. For this benefit, you both have to be first-time buyers.
Some lenders are more generous with their definition of a first-time buyer, though. The various government schemes have different rules, so the best way to find out what you could get is to check out our guide on first-time buyers or chat to a mortgage expert.
Can you be a first-time home buyer if your spouse owns a home?
If you’re buying jointly, then neither of you will count as a first-time buyer if one of you has bought a home before, even if they don’t own one now.
If it’s just you buying (for the first time), and your spouse still owns their property, then the taxman views you and your partner as a single entity that will own two properties. That means you’d be liable to pay higher-rate stamp duty to reflect that you have two homes. If your spouse has already sold their property and it’s just you buying, then you may qualify as a first-time buyer but it would be worth getting some specialist tax advice first.
How many times can you be a first-time buyer?
You can be a first-time buyer only once. As soon as you have a home that you can sell to help you to buy your next property, you’re not a first-time buyer.
Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage
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