I'm angry I've time wasted with the Help to Buy ISA'
Evening Standard|June 19, 2024
Millions of first-time buyers have their savings trapped in deposit schemes that have not kept pace with house price inflation.
India Block
I'm angry I've time wasted with the Help to Buy ISA'

When Sophie Barber opened a Help to Buy ISA in 2016, she hoped it would help her save towards a deposit for her first home. Introduced in 2015, the savings account allows holders to pay in £200 a month and receive a 25 per cent "top-up" from the Government. Savers can stash up to £12,000, receiving a £3,000 bonus.

But 27-year-old Barber, who lives in London, quickly realised that house prices were rising faster than a maximum saving of £15,000 could help with. There was also the property price cap (£250,000, rising to £450,000 in London) to contend with.

"[The] limit would make it almost impossible to use the ISA in the area I wanted to buy," she says. "I decided to open a LISA as a replacement in 2021 but I'm angry that I have wasted my time completely with the Help to Buy ISA."

This story is from the June 19, 2024 edition of Evening Standard.

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This story is from the June 19, 2024 edition of Evening Standard.

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