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A Conservative Party pledge to help 100,000 first-time buyers has been cautiously welcomed by LPC Living, the developer owned by the Pervaiz Naviede Family Trust.

The initiative, to be implemented should the party be re-elected next year, would allow those looking to climb the first rung of the property ladder to buy a new home at just 80% of the market value. It is proposed this can be made possible by building homes on so-called brownfield sites which have been previously used for industrial purposes and, as such, avoid certain taxes levied on new development sites.

The plans have been cautiously welcomed by LPC Living who have created more than 1,300 new homes on brownfield sites in cities such as Manchester, Liverpool and Salford. Currently LPC, backed by the Pervaiz Naviede Family Trust, are working on their first brownfield development in London in the borough of Hackney.

Scott Neal, marketing manager, said “Any scheme designed to help first-time buyers is to be welcomed particularly following the introduction of recent guidelines which limit the amount that banks can lend to prospective homebuyers. Certainly the Government’s Help to Buy scheme has helped tens of thousands of buyers purchase a property with as little as a 5% deposit. However, the scheme has faced criticism from some as it can be used on homes up to the value of £600,000, with some suggestions that it should be capped at a lower level to help a higher volume of more people”.

“We would be interested to understand more details about the Conservative’s proposed scheme in particular the controls in place to ensure it is not abused by those looking to let the property and the mechanisms in place to prevent buyers from selling up after a few months and making a profit at the expense of the taxpayer”.

In addition, while no details have been revealed about the location of the proposed sites in England, it is vital that essential community facilities are factored in such as local schools, health centres and public transport links.