The new Help to Buy scheme announced in the budget will give a boost to the region’s housing market, according to Ilkley-based estate agent Dacre Son & Hartley.

New homes director John Shaw said: “This scheme will enable buyers to purchase a new-build home with just a five per cent deposit with up to 20 per cent of the cost of the home funded by a shared equity interest free loan, which will be repayable when the home is sold. The remainder is paid for with a standard mortgage.

“The previous FirstBuy scheme was only open to first-time buyers but this one will be available to all buyers and cover homes up to the value of £600,000. It’s great news for the industry and for all those people who are desperate to get on or move up the property ladder but have been struggling to save a large deposit.”

The estate agent also welcomed a new mortgage guarantee announced by the Chancellor. Patrick McCutch-eon, head of Dacres Residential, said: “This guarantee will dramatically increase the availability of loans and run for three years from the start of 2014. It will involve £130bn of mortgages and will undoubtedly help to tackle the long-term problems of finance in the housing market. Lenders will be incentivised to make more mortgages available for people with smaller deposits which has been the crucial missing element of the housing policy for so long.”