Back
GrantScotland

Open Market Shared Equity Scheme (LIFT) — Scotland

Scottish Government, administered by Link Group (Link Housing) nationwide

Details being confirmed

Some figures on this page (such as the amount, deadline, or rate) are provisional and due a fresh verification pass against the official source. Please confirm the current details using the official link below before relying on this information.

Description

Part of the Scottish Government's Low-cost Initiative for First Time Buyers (LIFT). You buy a home on the open market and the Scottish Government takes a 10%–40% equity stake, so you only need a mortgage and deposit for the rest — and if you're 60 or over with a housing need, you don't need a mortgage at all. Priority goes to first-time buyers, council and housing association tenants, disabled people with a housing need, serving armed forces members, veterans who left in the last two years, and bereaved partners of service personnel. Maximum purchase prices are set per council area and per property size rather than nationally, and were uprated by a further 4.2% in line with Scottish median house price growth.

Amount

Scottish Government equity stake of 10%–40% of the purchase price, within area- and size-specific price thresholds

Deadline

Rolling / no fixed deadline

Eligibility summary

  • Available in: Scotland.
  • Open to individuals — not restricted to businesses.
  • Relevant income bands: earning under the Personal Allowance, basic rate taxpayers.
Notes
Price thresholds vary by local authority area and property size and must be checked against the published gov.scot threshold table for the area concerned — as an indication of scale, 2-apartment to 6-apartment thresholds run roughly £185,000–£585,000 in Edinburgh, £135,000–£410,000 in Glasgow and £90,000–£275,000 in Dundee. An approval ('passport') letter gives you a window of around 12 weeks to find a property. Distinct from New Supply Shared Equity (NSSE), the sibling LIFT strand for newly built housing association homes, where the buyer typically takes 60%–80%. Note a naming collision worth flagging to users: the separate First Home Fund closed in March 2022, while the new First Homes Fund (covered separately) opened in 2026.
Requirement
Membership of a priority group: first-time buyers; existing council or housing association tenants; disabled people with a housing need; serving members of the armed forces; veterans who left the forces within the past two years; and widows, widowers or partners of service personnel for up to two years after their death. People aged 60 or over with a housing need do not need to take out a mortgage.

Want help with this application?

This one is usually simple enough to do yourself using the free official link below — but if you'd rather have help, we're building relationships with vetted professionals and can let you know if that becomes available.

Some of the organisations we may connect you with pay us a referral fee if you use their service. This never affects which listings you see in the directory. No live partner is confirmed yet for this listing.

You can also do this yourself for free via the official source

How to apply

Apply through Link Group, which runs LIFT across Scotland on the Scottish Government's behalf; approved applicants receive a passport letter and then have a limited window to find a property within the threshold for their area and household size.

View official source

Last verified: 22 September 2026. See the footer disclaimer — this is general information, not financial or tax advice.