One young couple decided to flee the nest early and have purchased a two bedroom apartment at Barratt's Woolens Grove development in Hoddesdon, all thanks to the Government's HomeBuy Direct scheme.

ACCORDING to recent research from the National Housing Federation, 18 per cent of first-time buyers under the age of 30 plan to live with their parents while they save for a deposit.

But one young couple decided to flee the nest early and have purchased a two-bedroom apartment at Barratt’s Woolens Grove development in Hoddesdon, all thanks to the Governments HomeBuy Direct scheme.

First-time buyers Paul Claydon, 24, and Francesca Norton, 23, were delighted to cut the apron strings and last week moved into a brand new home of their own at Woolens Grove. The young couple decided to make the most of the Government scheme which meant that they only needed to find a mortgage for 70 per cent of the value of their new home; making getting on the property ladder an affordable option.

Paul says, 'Like many of our friends we could have stayed at home longer to save for a bigger deposit. However after over seven and a half years of dating we were quite keen to get a place of our own and I was also anxious to get onto the property ladder before house prices start to rise again.

'We found out about HomeBuy Direct and thought it was the ideal solution. With the scheme we were able to buy now and don’t need to pay anything back until we sell the property. It even meant that we only needed to find a five per cent deposit so we didn’t have to stay at home anymore and even have a bit left over to enjoy ourselves.'

Through HomeBuy Direct, first-time buyers in Hoddesdon can purchase 100 per cent of a new home at its Woolens Grove development whilst only paying 70 per cent of the price upfront. Negating the need for such a large deposit, the remaining 30 per cent is funded by a joint equity loan from Barratt and the Government’s Homes and Communities Agency. The outstanding equity can then be redeemed in installments over a ten year period or when the property is sold; whichever comes sooner.

Chris Scarborough, Sales Director for Barratt North London says, 'It’s really tough for first-time buyers these days who don’t have atleast a twenty per cent deposit. HomeBuy Direct is the ideal solution for so many new homebuyers who don’t have enough savings for the size of deposit required by most lenders now. It allows them to make the most of current house prices and what’s more they don’t need to pay back the 30 per cent share until they sell the property.

'Our Woolens Grove development has attracted a considerable amount of first-time buyers who want to purchase with HomeBuy Direct. They have been mainly local buyers from Hoddesdon, many of whom like Paul and Francesca have been living with their parents and saw this as an opportunity to get onto the first rung of the property ladder.'

Woolens Grove is an attractive new development in Hoddesdon by Barratt North London, where current prices start from �195,000 (or �136,500 with HomeBuy Direct.) Comprising 33 spacious two bedroom apartments with parking, the new homes are a popular choice with mew homebuyers.

Chris adds, 'However, first-time buyers will need to move quickly if they want to purchase with HomeBuy Direct as the scheme only has a couple of months remaining. Furthermore at the current sales rate we are experiencing at Woolens Grove, we expect to see these apartments sell out by June. I would advise anyone interest to give one of our friendly sales advisors a call sooner rather than later to see if they can benefit from the scheme.'

For further information on availability at Woolens Grove or to find out more about HomeBuy Direct ,please call 0844 8117171 or visit www.barratthomes.co.uk/woolensgrove.