First-Time Buyer Supports in Ireland: Help to Buy and First Home Scheme
Chapter 3 of Buying a Home in Ireland 101: compare Help to Buy and the First Home Scheme, including 2026 eligibility, €30,000 HTB maximum, FHS equity limits, price ceilings and service charges.
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There are two major schemes that can become part of a first-time buyer’s funding plan:
Help to Buy (HTB) and the First Home Scheme (FHS).
They are not the same thing.
Help to Buy is a tax refund.
The First Home Scheme is shared equity.
That distinction matters because one reduces your upfront funding gap, while the other gives the scheme an equity share in your home.
Help to Buy in one minute
Revenue’s enhanced Help to Buy scheme currently runs to 31 December 2029.
For a qualifying property, the maximum relief is the lowest of:
Income Tax and DIRT paid in the relevant prior years.
You do not automatically get €30,000.
Your actual entitlement is constrained by all three tests.
Which homes qualify for Help to Buy?
HTB is for a qualifying new home or self-build used as your main residence.
The purchase value or approved valuation must be €500,000 or less.
The mortgage must generally be at least 70% of the purchase value / approved valuation.
Ordinary second-hand homes do not qualify.
Who is a first-time buyer for HTB?
All purchasers must satisfy the first-time-buyer conditions.
Revenue’s test looks at whether you have previously purchased or built a dwelling.
If buying jointly, a co-purchaser who has previously owned a home can affect eligibility.
Check your exact position before assuming a joint purchase qualifies.
The tax-paid limit catches people out
HTB is a refund of qualifying Irish Income Tax and DIRT already paid.
It is not a grant detached from your tax record.
Example:
10% of new home price: €35,000
Cash cap: €30,000
Qualifying Income Tax/DIRT paid over the relevant period: €18,000
Maximum HTB claim:
€18,000.
That is the lowest of the three limits.
Five-year occupancy condition
Revenue requires the qualifying home to be your main home for five years after purchase or self-build.
A clawback can arise if the conditions are breached.
Do not use HTB for a purchase you already plan to turn into an investment property soon after closing.
The First Home Scheme
The FHS is different.
It is a shared-equity scheme.
The scheme contributes part of the purchase price / build cost and takes a corresponding percentage equity share in the property.
It is not an ordinary loan.
The percentage is important because the euro amount needed to redeem that share later can rise or fall with the property’s value.
Which First Home Scheme products exist?
The FHS currently has three main products:
For eligible buyers purchasing a newly built house or apartment in a private development.
For eligible first-time self-builders building a principal private residence on a site they own or are purchasing.
For eligible tenants with a valid Notice of Termination because the landlord is selling the property.
The Tenant Home Purchase product is an important exception to the idea that FHS is only for new homes.
Help to Buy cannot be used with the Tenant Home Purchase product because HTB itself is restricted to qualifying new builds and self-builds.
Maximum FHS equity
The current maximum is:
Maximum equity share where Help to Buy is not used.
Maximum equity share where Help to Buy is used.
The minimum FHS funding is generally the greater of:
- 2.5% of the purchase price / build cost;
- or €10,000.
You must maximise the participating lender mortgage
The FHS eligibility rules require applicants to have mortgage approval from a participating lender and generally borrow the maximum mortgage available to them under the lender’s assessment, up to the relevant income limits.
The FHS also states that applicants cannot use a Macro Prudential Exception with a participating lender for the transaction.
That makes FHS a gap-funding mechanism, not simply optional cheap equity for someone who could otherwise borrow less.
Property price ceilings
The FHS has different maximum property prices by local-authority area.
Current examples include:
| Local authority | Current ceiling |
|---|---|
| Dublin City / Fingal / South Dublin / Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown | €500,000 |
| Wicklow | €500,000 |
| Galway City / Kildare / Meath | €475,000 |
| Cork County / Galway County / Limerick City & County | €450,000 |
| Kerry / Louth / Mayo | €425,000 |
| Many other counties | €375,000–€400,000 |
Some areas distinguish between house and apartment ceilings.
The ceilings are reviewed periodically.
Use the live FHS list rather than relying on an old article when you apply.
Service charges
There is no FHS service charge for the first five years.
From year six, the current rates are:
These service charges are separate from the fact that the FHS owns an equity percentage.
That equity share is the more important long-term economic feature.
Why rising house prices affect redemption
Suppose:
Property price: €400,000
FHS equity share: 10%
Initial FHS amount: €40,000
If the property later values at €500,000 and the 10% share remains:
10% redemption value = €50,000.
If the property falls to €350,000:
10% redemption value = €35,000.
The percentage stays the same; the euro value moves with the property.
HTB + FHS example
New home price: €450,000
Suppose:
- mortgage: €360,000;
- buyer cash: €45,000;
- HTB: €30,000.
Funding so far: €435,000.
Gap: €15,000.
An FHS equity share of €15,000 / €450,000 = 3.33% could potentially fill the gap if all scheme conditions are satisfied.
The fact that FHS allows up to 20% when HTB is used does not mean you should automatically take 20%.
Take only the amount required by the plan.
Use the First Home Scheme Calculator to model the percentage.
HTB does not make the house cheaper
This is an important mental model.
HTB helps fund the deposit.
It does not reduce the purchase price.
If HTB increases the amount you can bid, the mortgage still has to be repaid and the house still costs what you agreed.
Use supports to make a sustainable purchase possible, not to justify an unsustainable maximum bid.
FHS is not free money
The service charge starts later, but even during years 1–5 the scheme still owns an equity percentage.
If the home rises in value, the cost of buying back that percentage rises with it.
A shared-equity scheme solves an affordability gap by sharing ownership economics.
That can be valuable.
It should still be understood before signing.
Other affordable-purchase schemes
Local authorities and approved housing bodies can also have affordable-purchase arrangements.
Eligibility, income limits, property allocations and equity terms differ from HTB and the national FHS.
If you are considering a specific local authority scheme, use that scheme’s current documentation.
Which support should you use?
Do not begin with:
“How much support can I get?”
Begin with:
“What home can I afford without the support?”
Then:
“Does support make a suitable home affordable while keeping the mortgage sustainable?”
That avoids turning a support ceiling into a target purchase price.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use Help to Buy on a second-hand home?
No. HTB is for qualifying new homes and self-builds.
How much Help to Buy can I get?
Up to €30,000, but the actual amount is the lowest of €30,000, 10% of the qualifying property value and the qualifying Income Tax/DIRT paid over the relevant four years.
Can I use Help to Buy and First Home Scheme together?
Yes, subject to the rules. If HTB is used, the maximum FHS equity share is 20%.
Is the First Home Scheme a loan?
No. It is shared equity. The scheme takes a percentage equity share in the property.
Does FHS charge interest?
It does not operate as an ordinary interest-bearing loan. Service charges apply from year six, while the equity share itself remains linked to the property value.
Chapter 4 covers property research, the Price Register, setting a maximum bid and what “sale agreed” actually means.
Chapter 4 — House Hunting & Bidding →
