How workplace financial education can help first-time buyer employees save faster for a deposit

With various schemes available to help employees save, they need to know which is right for them

With the cost of living crisis putting pressure on household finances, it is even more difficult than ever for first-time buyers to get on the property ladder. Therefore, it is extremely important for employers to offer their workforce as much support as possible.

Many people believe home ownership is beyond their reach. Helping these employees manage their finances, while providing them with a good understanding of the benefits and support available to them can make all the difference.

The best way to achieve this is through financial education and guidance sessions delivered in the workplace. More and more forward-thinking organisations are switched on to how this can help employees and offer this support as part of their overall wellbeing objectives.

A range of savings vehicles

There are various savings vehicles that can help employees save for a deposit, such as ISAs or share schemes like Save As You Earn or share incentive plans. The Lifetime ISA can be particularly helpful as it provides a guaranteed 25% bonus from the government.

There are also variations of the Help to Buy scheme that could be useful, including the mortgage guarantee scheme announced in the 2021 budget, which offers lenders a guarantee on mortgages where a borrower has a deposit of only 5%.

However, employees will need to understand the advantages and disadvantages of each of these savings methods to fully take advantage of them, and choose the most appropriate.
Not only this, employees will also benefit from support on how they could better manage their finances to free up more money to divert into their savings.