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Gen H launches New Build Boost: "Gen H’s new scheme is Help to Buy 2.0—a repackaged trap"

ended 18. March 2025

Residential mortgage lender Gen H has announced the launch of New Build Boost, the first scheme since Help to Buy that targets buyers with small deposits and no access to family help. The New Build Boost mortgage scheme is made of 3 parts:

  • The buyer brings a minimum 5% deposit
  • They take out an 80% Loan-to-Value (LTV) mortgage with Gen H
  • Gen H closes the gap with a 15% interest-free boost supported by the house builder

New Build Boost buyers will get access to Gen H’s standard 80% LTV mortgage lending criteria, which the lender claims will boost their purchasing power and solve the deposit and affordability constraints that have locked so many out of homeownership. The structure of the boost mirrors Help to Buy – it is an equity loan, the value of which increases or decreases with changes in the house price. The boost is interest-free for its entire term, which can run for the full duration of the mortgage. This, Gen H says, avoids the payment shock that Help to Buy customers encountered if they were unable to redeem their equity loan after the first 5 years. Newspage asked brokers for their views, which will appear below until 10am.

9 responses from the Newspage community

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Bob Singh
Founder at Chess Mortgages
Gen H should be applauded for launching this scheme, which effectively is Help to Buy 2.0. As advisers we have to dissect products and this mortgages does need to come with a warning. Whilst interest-free for the term of the loan, the loan amount can rise with time as house prices rise, netting the builder a handsome return. This product is likely to limit mobility so anyone taking this product needs to plan an exit as their income position improves. It’s just a stepping stone in the long journey of home ownership.
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Justin Moy
Managing Director at EHF Mortgages
This looks to be a great initiative from Gen H, removing the interest payments issue many Help-to-Buy borrowers complained about after those initial five years. With property prices looking more stable than predicted, Gen H has found a way to offer New Build buyers a reduced mortgage and a lower rate to allow better affordabilty in the short term. Buyers need to remember that the equity loan, whilst interest-free, is linked to the property value and that it will likely cost more in the long run if prices do escalate over time, but if prices are flat for the next few years, this could be a great opportunity for homebuyers.
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Ranald Mitchell
Director at bad credit mortgage specialists Charwin Mortgages
Gen H’s new scheme is Help to Buy 2.0—a repackaged trap. A lower 15% equity loan doesn’t fix the real issue: getting out. Buyers will step into shiny new homes, only to find limited mortgage options down the line, leaving them stuck. Homeownership should be simple—if you can’t afford it, don’t buy it. Instead, we’re seeing complex schemes that lure people in but offer no easy exit. We’ve been here before with Help to Buy and have we learned nothing.
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Pete Mugleston
Mortgage Advisor & Managing Director at onlinemortgageadvisor.co.uk
Gen H’s New Build Boost is an interesting attempt to tackle affordability challenges, but whether it truly solves the issue remains to be seen. The structure closely mirrors Help to Buy, which had its fair share of criticisms, particularly around inflated new-build prices and buyers struggling to move up the property ladder. While the interest-free equity loan is a welcome improvement, the fact remains that buyers are still taking on more debt to afford increasingly expensive homes. Without wider reforms in housing supply and pricing, initiatives like this may provide short-term help but fail to address the bigger affordability crisis.
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Michelle Lawson
Director at Lawson Financial
This is a great initiative but it has been wrongly channelled. We need to be looking at the root cause of the problem rather than stoking the fire. Buyers, particularly first-timers, need help with affordability as the pricing gap keeps increasing. And the best way to beat affordability ultimately comes down to building more affordable homes. Too often developers builds houses that are simply out of reach.
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Emma Jones
Managing Director at Whenthebanksaysno.co.uk
Brilliant scheme to support in an area the government isn’t doing enough in. Although this doesn’t solve the real issue it does give borrowers support in locations where buying your first home is even more out of reach
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Stephen Perkins
Managing Director at Yellow Brick Mortgages
First time buyers need a lot of help to buy a new build property. This scheme has similarities to the Help to Buy scheme, with the same dangers around long term costs and restrictions. If house prices continue to increase the cost of repayment in the future could be hefty.
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Hannah Bashford
Director at Model Financial Solutions
Gen H are always innovating and it is great to see. The Help to Buy scheme has always had its place in the market for certain borrowers and this will be a welcome product for those struggling to get their deposit together. However, as with the Help to Buy scheme it doesn’t make it right for everyone and if you can buy without using the scheme, this is likely to be preferable in the long term.
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Peter Dockar
Chief Commercial Officer at Gen H (Generation Home)
We’re very excited to launch New Build Boost. This proposition has been in development for almost 2 years, which speaks to how difficult it is to innovate in this market – but it’s critical we keep trying. It’s worth calling out a few important customer-focused differences between New Build Boost and Help to Buy. For example, the equity loan is frozen for 5 years and interest-free forever, and its repayment value is capped at twice what is originally borrowed. But New Build Boost is not going to be right for everyone – if a customer can buy with a standard high street mortgage, they should! New Build Boost is designed to be a stepping stone, and like any part-interest-only mortgage buyers should think about their exit plans. But our modelling indicates most customers should be able to repay the boost in full with additional borrowing after 5 years. All thoughts and questions are welcome – I’m happy to provide more context as needed!