Getting into your first UK home can  be a lot easier than you think. The first thing that you’re really going to have to do is really separate yourself from the concept that it’s hard. There are going to be some challenges, but for every challenge, there is often a solution that you can use in order to get what you really desire.

For example, you might have heard about the lease option, or the rent to buy option. Now, a lot of people skip over this option because they assume that it’s only social housing tenants that get this option. You can actually get it too, but you just have to find a lease option scheme that’s going to work for you.

The concept is based on a perfect blend of buying the home and renting the home. Companies offer this service because it’s profitable for them — they’re getting someone into a property, and you get to know that you’re going to be able to one day call that property your own.

Usually you have the right to buy after a three year period. In order to really maximize your chances of getting the property, it’s going to be absolutely important that you don’t miss a payment. If you were to miss a payment, you may run the risk of not being able to buy the property after all.

There are some Government schemes that run along these lines as well. It’s called Rent to HomeBuy. If you’re a first time buyer in England with a household income of 60,000 GBP or less, you’ll be able to rent at 80% of the market rate in order to help save for a deposit. After a few years, you would then have the option to buy 25% or more of the property.

You will need to contact a good HomeBuy agent in order to see if you have a good chance of qualifying for this program.

There are some pitfalls to the rent to buy scheme. You will still need to pay an option fee of around two percent of the current property value. Think of it like a deposit — you’re putting down the serious intention that you’re going to buy a portion of the property.

But the advantage of not having to play the savings catch up game cannot be overlooked. Instead of sighing in defeat knowing that you can’t save as fast as the house prices rise, the price of your chosen property is going to be fixed. From the day you move in as a tenant, you will know that the property will be yours someday. In addition, you are free to make a lot of repairs and updates to the property without the fear of having that money wasted. It’s completely up to you, of course!