A government initiative has helped families in Brentwood get onto the housing ladder.

New figures released by the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) reveal that 97 homeowners in Brentwood used the Help to Buy scheme since it was launched nearly five years ago.

A total of 5,016 homebuyers in Essex used have used the scheme. Within the county the districts which made the best use of the scheme were Colchester (1,107), Thurrock (1,021), Basildon (524), Chelmsford (477) and Uttlesford (342).

The scheme is available to existing home owners and to first time buyers, but over three quarters of those using the scheme in Essex have been first time buyers.

The scheme enables anyone to put down just five per cent as a deposit for their new home and to take advantage of a government equity loan providing access to more affordable mortgage rates.

Local housebuilder David Wilson Homes Eastern Counties is encouraging homebuyers throughout Essex to take part in the popular scheme.

Jason Colmer, Sales Director for David Wilson Homes Eastern Counties, said: “Essex has produced some strong results for the Help to Buy scheme.

“Help to Buy has proved so helpful to so many homebuyers and we would encourage anyone looking to buy a home with lower upfront costs and lower monthly repayments to get in touch.”

Help to Buy was created with the purpose of assisting buyers, first time or otherwise, with affordable home ownership. The scheme allows any homebuyer to secure a brand-new home under the value of £600,000 with just a five per cent deposit.

The government lends the buyer 20 per cent of the value of the property in the form of an interest free equity loan for five years.