Buying your first home
Stamp duty, a Lifetime ISA and help from family can each change the sum by thousands. See the cash you need upfront, and where each one stands.
Your answer
Enter the price and your savings to see the cash you need.
About this calculator
For anyone buying their first home, alone or with someone else, who wants to know the cash they need on the day and how a Lifetime ISA or help from family fits in. It's a guide, not mortgage advice.
What happens to your answers
We don’t keep them. Your answers go to our server to do the sums and aren’t stored or logged. If you copy a link to your answers, they’re in the link itself, so only share it with people you trust.
How it’s worked out
Your deposit is your savings, plus a Lifetime ISA if it can be used for this home, plus any gift. We add stamp duty, worked out the same way as our stamp duty calculator, and the fees. Whatever the deposit doesn't cover is left to borrow.
First-time buyers pay no stamp duty up to £300,000 and 5% on the part up to £500,000, if everyone buying has never owned a home. A Lifetime ISA can go towards a first home costing £450,000 or less, bought with a mortgage, at least 12 months after your first payment in.
Worked example
You'd need about £41,500 upfront for a £320,000 home: a £37,500 deposit, £1,000 stamp duty and about £3,000 in fees.
England · buying with another first-time buyer · UK resident · fees £3,000 (our guide) · Lifetime ISA paid into over a year ago
| Price | £320,000 |
|---|---|
| Your own savings towards the deposit | £15,000 |
| Lifetime ISA (about £2,500 of it is the 25% bonus, if it hasn't grown) | £12,500 |
| Family gift towards the deposit | £10,000 |
| Your deposit | £37,500 |
| Left to borrow: 88.3% of the price | £282,500 |
| Stamp duty with first-time buyer relief: 0% up to £300,000, 5% up to £500,000 | + £1,000 |
| Solicitor, survey and lender fees (our guide figure) | + £3,000 |
| Cash you need upfront | £41,500 |
Worked out using HMRC's published rates for the 2026/27 tax year (6 April 2026 to 5 April 2027), on a yearly basis.
Questions people ask
What happens to my Lifetime ISA if the home costs more than £450,000?
You can't use it for that home without a charge. Taking money out for anything other than a first home (before you're 60) costs 25% of what you take out, which can be more than the bonus you were given.
Do my parents pay tax if they give us money for a deposit?
Not when they give it, and you don't pay tax to receive it. Inheritance tax only comes into it if the giver dies within 7 years, and the first £3,000 a year from each giver is outside it straight away.
Can I use my Lifetime ISA if I'm buying with someone who has owned a home?
Yes, if you're a first-time buyer yourself. They can't use theirs without the charge, and you won't get first-time buyer relief on stamp duty.
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