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IFS: Help to Buy Scheme Favored Wealthy, Limited Affordability

4/15/2026

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Summary

Story summary

The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) found that England's Help to Buy, launched in 2013, mainly benefited higher earners in cheaper areas and had limited impact on affordability and social mobility.
The scheme included a mortgage guarantee and an equity loan, but critics argued it pushed up house prices.
The equity loan scheme is now closed to new applicants, while the mortgage guarantee scheme remains permanent across the United Kingdom.

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Story summary

The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) found that England's Help to Buy, launched in 2013, mainly benefited higher earners in cheaper areas and had limited impact on affordability and social mobility.
The scheme included a mortgage guarantee and an equity loan, but critics argued it pushed up house prices.
The equity loan scheme is now closed to new applicants, while the mortgage guarantee scheme remains permanent across the United Kingdom.