For many first time buyers owning their own home can seem like a distant dream with a range of financial hurdles standing in their way, but this needn’t be the case at the house builder’s Lawley Farm development in Telford where the popular HomeBuy Direct scheme is available on selected homes.

Many first time buyers have already taken advantage of this popular shared equity scheme which enables them to own 100 per cent of the home for as little as 70 per cent of the purchase price. They include Sam Pedley and Faye Dudley, who bought a Taylor Wimpey home earlier this year.

Sam, 25, said: “We were both living at home with our parents, but we really wanted to move in together and enjoy our own space.”

We had very little savings and thought it would take at least two years to buy a decent property so never dreamed we’d be able to get a beautiful home with such a small deposit.”

Thanks to Taylor Wimpey Midlands and the HomeBuy Direct scheme we have made our first step on to the property ladder.”

Despite the scheme helping Sam and Faye, the house builder believes that there’s still plenty of confusion surrounding HomeBuy Direct that may be putting first time buyers off taking the plunge.

Anne Wallace, regional sales and marketing director for Taylor Wimpey Midlands, said: “HomeBuy Direct is a fantastic shared equity scheme that’s helped many first time buyers realise a dream of owning their first home.”

Having said that we’re still coming across first time buyers who have little or no knowledge of HomeBuy Direct, and those that do can still be confused by how the scheme works.”

We’ve still got a number of homes ideal for first time buyers that are available under the scheme so are keen to dispel the myths and get people moving.”

Taylor Wimpey has devised some top tips to help clear up the confusion surrounding HomeBuy Direct (HBD).

• Do your research: Make sure you qualify. HomeBuy Direct is aimed at helping purchasers with a five per cent deposit (of the 70 per cent) and household income of less than £60,000.

• Be ready to move fast: HomeBuy Direct is such a popular scheme that there are a limited number of properties available. To stand a chance of securing your dream home talk to our financial advisors who can assist you with this.

• Calculate the deposit required before you buy: You need a five per cent deposit so make sure you have access to this before applying. For example, if you’re buying an apartment for £66,497 (HBD price) then you’ll need a £3,325 deposit.

• Make sure you can afford the monthly mortgage payments: If you buy an apartment for £66,457 (HBD price) then your monthly loan payment will be £351 (subject to mortgage availability) so make sure that you can afford to meet this cost each month.

• Be aware of additional costs: HomeBuy Direct only covers 30 per cent of the property’s purchase price, meaning you may still have to cover additional house buying costs such as arrangement and legal fees.

• Look to the future: The scheme lets you buy 100 per cent of your new home for as little as 70 per cent of the price now. However, although the outstanding amount is covered by a loan which is interest free for the first five years, you will need to start paying it back at a low rate after this time so ensure you have factored it into your calculations. If possible, start saving in advance of the repayment period to avoid financial difficulties.

HomeBuy Direct is designed to help purchasers with a household income of less than £60,000 afford the home they want.

An interest free equity loan is available for up to 30 percent of the value of the property, co-funded by the Homes and Communities Agency and Taylor Wimpey Midlands. For example, the initiative means that if you qualify for a mortgage of £140,000, you could buy a property worth up to £200,000.

There is currently a selection of homes available at Lawley Farm with prices starting from just £129,995.

For more information on the selection of homes available under HomeBuy Direct at Lawley Farm visit the development or call 0845 026 3888.