First Home Fund applications: FOI release

Information requested

1. How many applications were made to the First Home Fund between April 1st 2021 and April 4th 2021 when the scheme was closed.

2. How many applications were made and/or processed to the Help to Buy and LIFT schemes in the same time period as above – 1st April 2021 to 4th April 2021.

3. What was the age and gender breakdown of applicants who made successful applications to the First Home Fund between April 1st – April 4th 2021.

4. What was the number of single person applications and what was the number of joint applications for the First Home Fund between April 1st – April 4th 2021.

5. A numerical breakdown of which local authority areas accessed the First Home Fund and how many applications were made from each local authority that were successful.

6. What was the size of the applicants’ initial personal deposit before being awarded the additional support from the First Home Fund between 1st April – 4th April 2021.

7. A numerical breakdown of which housebuilder/developers that accessed the First Home Fund for the residents on their new developments.

8. How many applications were made for new build properties from the First Home Fund April 1st 2021 – April 4th 2021.

9. How many applications were made for pre-existing houses in Scotland between 1st April 2021 – 4th April 2021.

10. A numerical breakdown in deciles of the costs of properties that were awarded funding from the First Home Fund April 1st 2021 – 4th April 2021.

11. A numerical breakdown in the number of applications which were made to mortgage providers and property developers who had submitted their missives/ notes of interest submitted between 1st January 2021 and 31st March 2021.

Response

As per our correspondence with you on 2 August, with respect to the First Home Fund, we have provided information on applications received to the fund between 1st and 8th April, rather than the 4th April, since the fund closed to new applications on the 8th April. Furthermore, since applications which have been approved can subsequently be withdrawn by the purchaser, the data we have provided for the First Home Fund is based on an extract from the managing agent’s database as at 7th July 2021 relating to applications which had been approved and which had either settled or were awaiting settlement, i.e. it excludes applications which had been approved but which had been withdrawn by the purchaser prior to 7th July.

A number of other points should be kept in mind when interpreting the data:

• The final number of sales will differ from the number of approved applications as at 7th July to the extent that purchasers withdraw their applications after this date.
• Data on age and gender include data for both applicants in the case of joint applicants; thus the total of applicants exceeds the total of applications.
• Some data fields are completed by applicants on a voluntary basis when the sale settles, and are purely for monitoring purposes, which means that not all applications have provided information; we have noted the numbers involved where this is the case.
• Data which is provided on a voluntary basis is not subject to routine quality assurance.

1. Information relating to this question has been previously released under FOI reference number FOI/202100195615, available at Information relating to First Home Fund: FOI release - gov.scot (www.gov.scot). As at 7th July 2021, 2,862 applications had been approved and had either settled or were awaiting settlement. The difference between this number and data in FOI/202100195615 will be due to any applications which had been withdrawn by 7th July.

2. From 1st to 8th April 2021, 54 applications were made and/or processed to the Open Market Shared Equity scheme. From the 1st to 8th April, 5 applications were made and/or processed to the Help to Buy schemes.

3. As at 7th July 2021, the breakdown by age of First Home Fund purchasers was:
 

Age Bands	Number of applicants
18-25	1,089
26-30	1,658
31-35	930
36-40	458
41-45	209
46-50	90
51-60	44
Over 60	1

As at 7th July 2021, the breakdown by gender of First Home Fund purchasers was:
 

Female	1,254
Male	1,235
No response provided	2,005

4. As at 7 July 2021, the number of single person applications in the First Home Fund was 1,230 and the number of joint applications was 1,632.

5. At as 7th July 2021, the breakdown by local authority of First Home Fund applications was:

Local Authority	Number
Aberdeen City	136
Aberdeenshire	106
Angus	57
Argyll and Bute	12
City of Edinburgh	285
Clackmannanshire	29
Na h-Eileanan Siar	4
Dumfries and Galloway	16
Dundee City	109
East Ayrshire	53
East Dunbartonshire	24
East Lothian	74
East Renfrewshire	40
Falkirk	79
Fife	189
Glasgow City	358
Inverclyde	24
Midlothian	124
North Ayrshire	46
North Lanarkshire	197
Orkney Islands	2
Perth and Kinross	55
Renfrewshire	142
Scottish Borders	22
Shetland Islands	1
South Ayrshire	20
South Lanarkshire	261
Stirling	40
Highlands	96
Moray	46
West Dunbartonshire	37
West Lothian	127
No address provided	51

6. We do not hold information regarding the size of individuals’ personal deposits before being awarded the additional support from the First Home Fund. However, as at 7th July 2021, the average deposit that purchasers had contributed or had indicated that they would contribute towards the purchase of their home was £16,720.

7. Housebuilders/developers do not access the First Home Fund; only individuals can access the fund. Alternatively, if you require a breakdown of which, if any, housebuilder/developer an individual indicated that they intend to purchase from please contact firsthomefund@gov.scot

8. As at 7th July 2021, the number of First Home Fund applications for new build properties was 1,212.

9. As at 7th July 2021, the number of First Home Fund applications for existing build properties was 1,650.

10. As at 7th July 2021, the breakdown by decile of First Home Fund purchase prices was:
 

Purchase price decile	Purchase price level
1	£100,000
2	£126,300
3	£145,000
4	£165,000
5	£182,000
6	£200,000
7	£215,000
8	£235,400
9	£262,000

While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance the Scottish Government does not have some of the information you have requested. The reason why we don't have the information is explained below:-

11. No records are held of a numerical breakdown in the number of applications which were made to mortgage providers and property developers who had submitted their missives/ notes of interest between 1st January 2021 and 31st March 2021.

This is a formal notice under section 17(1) of FOISA that the Scottish Government does not have the information you have requested.

About FOI

The Scottish Government is committed to publishing all information released in response to Freedom of Information requests. View all FOI responses at http://www.gov.scot/foi-responses.