The Conservatives said their new Help to Buy Starter Homes scheme would stimulate building 100,000 extra starter homes on targeted brownfield land.
The discount will be delivered by building the homes on the lower value land, and by dropping Section 106 and Community Infrastructure charges, as well as exempting the new homes from meeting 2016 zero carbon homes standard.
Cameron said: “We want to help more young people achieve the dream of home ownership so today I can pledge we will build 100,000 homes for young, first-time buyers.
“We will make these starter homes 20% cheaper by exempting them from a raft of taxes and by using brownfield land. I don’t want to see young people locked out of home ownership.
“We’ve already started to tackle the problem with Help to Buy mortgages - and these new plans will help tens of thousands more people to buy their first home.”
The move was welcomed by the industry as another step in the right direction but calls are growing for a long-term strategic approach to support housing investment and create a stable industry.
CEO of the Modern Masonry Alliance, Mike Leonard, said: “While we welcome this announcement we need long term joined up plans and not sound bites. We need long term 30-year local delivery plans that join up the dots.
“We need to ensure we build with British made bricks and blocks built to last 150 years.
“This will create thousands of local jobs in manufacturing, merchanting and on site construction.
“Mixed messages from the Coalition Government will destroy investment in UK Plc and will miss the opportunity to provide many thousands of meaningful jobs for the 50% of young people who will follow vocational careers.”
