The quarterly statistics show that 12,388 mortgage completions from the scheme launch on 19 April to the end of December 2021, represented 5% of all residential mortgage completions in UK
The UK government has revealed that 12,388 mortgages had been completed through its 95% loan to value (LTV) scheme at the end of 2021.
The scheme, which was announced in March last year, provides buyers with the option to put down a 5% deposit on a home with a value of up to £600,000 ($732,457), to address the problem of higher-LTV mortgages disappearing from the market.
The latest quarterly statistics show that 12,388 mortgage completions from the scheme launch on 19 April to the end of December 2021, represented 5% of all residential mortgage completions in the UK.
While the scheme had a slow take-up in the first six months, completions increased in the final three months of the year with 5,863 from October to the end of December.
Of the total completions, 86% were purchased by first-time buyers.
The report found that the corresponding value of the guarantees was £326m ($397m) while the overall value of loans supported by the scheme was £2.2bn ($2.69bn). The mortgages were used to finance properties worth £2.35bn ($2.87bn) in total.
The mean value of a property purchased or remortgaged through the mortgage guarantee scheme to the end of December 2021 was £189,804 ($231,705), compared to an average UK house price of £274,712 ($335,357).
Data found that 28% of all mortgage completions through the scheme to date were on properties in the lowest value band, and 66% were on properties worth £200,000 ($244,152) or less.
Only 21% of mortgage completions were on properties valued at £250,000 ($305,190) and above.
The majority of mortgage completions through the scheme were on terraced houses, making up 35% of total completions.
Flats or maisonettes made up 28% of completions, while completions for detached houses and bungalows equated to 7% and 3% of the total respectively.
Commenting on the latest data, Quilter mortgage expert Karen Noye says: First time buyers are facing a disastrous raft of issues at the moment having suffered from ever-increasing house prices, inflation eating away at their deposits, a rise in the cost of living disrupting their ability to save and now successive interest rate hikes.
Noye says: It is therefore somewhat surprising to see that only 12,388 mortgages have been completed with the help of the Mortgage Guarantee Scheme, which should be acting as a lifeline for those struggling to get on the housing ladder.