PEOPLE hoping to get their foot on the property ladder in West Oxfordshire could find help thanks to a new scheme which is the first of its kind in the county.

The new scheme will help first time buyers who are unable to buy a property outright or pay a large deposit but can make mortgage repayments.

Buyers participating in the Local Authority Partnership Purchase Scheme will purchase a share in a home with West Oxfordshire District Council paying the rest. Occupiers will then pay rent to the council to cover its stake.

Deputy leader of the council Toby Morris said: “We know how difficult it can be for people to buy their own home in West Oxfordshire given how high house prices are.

“This innovative scheme could help make the difference between renting and ownership and allow people to really put down roots in the district.”

The scheme will, for example, enable an individual to buy a 70 per cent share in a property by obtaining a mortgage of up to 90 per cent (i.e. a mortgage of 90 per cent on the 70 per cent share). The council will buy the remaining 30 per cent, subject to an independent valuation done by a surveyor it will appoint, on which it will then collect rent.

Each applicant will be assessed and awarded points based on a range of criteria.

The scheme opened yesterday and is expected to run until October.