{
  "schemaVersion": 1,
  "kind": "Fixed calculator reference example",
  "id": "first-time-buyer-budget",
  "name": "First-time buyer maximum budget",
  "canonicalUrl": "https://count.ie/property/first-time-buyer-budget/",
  "referenceUrl": "https://count.ie/calculator-reference/first-time-buyer-budget.json",
  "audienceLocale": "en-IE",
  "siteFocus": "Ireland",
  "question": "What is the most I can spend on a new home as a first-time buyer in Ireland?",
  "answerSummary": "First-time buyer maximum budget example — Household gross annual income (€): 90,000; Mortgage limit: 4× household income; Available own deposit excluding Help to Buy (€): 45,000; Use Help to Buy: yes. Max Purchase Budget: €405,000.00; Mortgage Drawdown: €360,000.00; Help To Buy: €0.00; First Home Scheme Equity: €0.00.",
  "method": "Tests each constraint boundary and returns the highest price at which deposit + Help to Buy + mortgage (+ FHS equity) equals the price and every rule holds together.",
  "methodology": "Tests each constraint boundary and returns the highest price at which deposit + Help to Buy + mortgage (+ FHS equity) equals the price and every rule holds together.",
  "calculationSteps": {
    "explanation": "Tests each constraint boundary and returns the highest price at which deposit + Help to Buy + mortgage (+ FHS equity) equals the price and every rule holds together.",
    "coverage": "published-catalogue-method",
    "steps": [
      {
        "step": "Published calculation method",
        "formula": "Tests each constraint boundary and returns the highest price at which deposit + Help to Buy + mortgage (+ FHS equity) equals the price and every rule holds together.",
        "scope": "Use the stated input units, supported modes and limitations below."
      }
    ],
    "limitations": "Not mortgage approval or scheme approval. Help to Buy needs a price of €500,000 or less, mortgage at least 70% of price and four-year tax. FHS needs maximum mortgage, no macro-prudential exception, deposit plus HTB of 10%, equity from the higher of €10,000 or 2.5% up to 20% with HTB or 30% without, and a price inside your entered ceiling. Fees, taxes, affordability and Central Bank LTV exceptions are excluded.",
    "authority": "Explanation of the implemented calculator, not independent professional review, enactment verification or a promise of AI citation."
  },
  "relatedCalculators": [
    {
      "id": "first-home-scheme",
      "name": "First Home Scheme equity scenarios",
      "url": "https://count.ie/property/first-home-scheme/",
      "purpose": "Check each part of a first-home funding plan."
    },
    {
      "id": "help-to-buy",
      "name": "Help to Buy refund estimate",
      "url": "https://count.ie/property/help-to-buy/",
      "purpose": "Check each part of a first-home funding plan."
    },
    {
      "id": "stamp-duty",
      "name": "Irish stamp duty",
      "url": "https://count.ie/property/stamp-duty/",
      "purpose": "Check each part of a first-home funding plan."
    },
    {
      "id": "mortgage",
      "name": "Mortgage & borrowing limits",
      "url": "https://count.ie/property/mortgage-ireland/",
      "purpose": "Check each part of a first-home funding plan."
    },
    {
      "id": "bridging-loan",
      "name": "Bridging loan costs",
      "url": "https://count.ie/property/bridging-loan/",
      "purpose": "Explore another calculator in the same topic."
    },
    {
      "id": "home-purchase-budget",
      "name": "Home purchase cash budget",
      "url": "https://count.ie/property/home-purchase-budget/",
      "purpose": "Explore another calculator in the same topic."
    }
  ],
  "relatedControls": [],
  "assumptionsAndLimitations": "Not mortgage approval or scheme approval. Help to Buy needs a price of €500,000 or less, mortgage at least 70% of price and four-year tax. FHS needs maximum mortgage, no macro-prudential exception, deposit plus HTB of 10%, equity from the higher of €10,000 or 2.5% up to 20% with HTB or 30% without, and a price inside your entered ceiling. Fees, taxes, affordability and Central Bank LTV exceptions are excluded.",
  "interpretation": "Compare max purchase budget, mortgage drawdown, help to buy using matching periods and units. A total cost, a recurring payment and a percentage answer different questions. Check omitted costs and the timing of payments before using the result as a spending commitment.",
  "example": {
    "kind": "Illustrative, not personalised",
    "values": {
      "householdGrossIncome": 90000,
      "mortgageMode": "multiple",
      "lenderApprovedMortgage": 0,
      "deposit": 45000,
      "useHelpToBuy": true,
      "qualifyingDate": "2026-10-07",
      "eligibleFourYearTaxes": 30000,
      "htbConditionsConfirmed": false,
      "useFHS": false,
      "fhsPriceCeiling": 475000,
      "targetPrice": 0
    },
    "inputs": [
      {
        "label": "Household gross annual income (€)",
        "value": "90,000"
      },
      {
        "label": "Mortgage limit",
        "value": "4× household income"
      },
      {
        "label": "Available own deposit excluding Help to Buy (€)",
        "value": "45,000"
      },
      {
        "label": "Use Help to Buy",
        "value": "yes"
      },
      {
        "label": "Contract signing date (or self-build first drawdown)",
        "value": "2026-10-07"
      },
      {
        "label": "Income Tax and DIRT paid in the four years before application (€)",
        "value": "30,000"
      },
      {
        "label": "All other Help to Buy conditions confirmed",
        "value": "no"
      },
      {
        "label": "Use First Home Scheme equity if there is a gap",
        "value": "no"
      },
      {
        "label": "Optional target purchase price (€, 0 for none)",
        "value": "0"
      }
    ],
    "outputs": [
      {
        "key": "maxPurchaseBudgetEuro",
        "label": "Max Purchase Budget",
        "value": 405000,
        "displayValue": "€405,000.00"
      },
      {
        "key": "mortgageDrawdownEuro",
        "label": "Mortgage Drawdown",
        "value": 360000,
        "displayValue": "€360,000.00"
      },
      {
        "key": "helpToBuyEuro",
        "label": "Help To Buy",
        "value": 0,
        "displayValue": "€0.00"
      },
      {
        "key": "firstHomeSchemeEquityEuro",
        "label": "First Home Scheme Equity",
        "value": 0,
        "displayValue": "€0.00"
      }
    ],
    "displayValuesMayBeRounded": true,
    "scopeNote": "Only this fixed case is described. Other modes, dates and eligibility choices can give different results. Values include all public model settings, including dormant options; inputs list the active settings. Use the full input list, method and limitations together."
  },
  "provenance": {
    "publisher": "Count.ie",
    "publisherUrl": "https://count.ie/about/#publisher-profile",
    "pageUpdatedOn": "2026-10-16",
    "sourceCheckedOn": null,
    "reviewScope": "Any dated method notes below apply only to their stated scope. A formula or user-entered rate is not evidence that statutory rules are current.",
    "sourceBasis": "Uses the cited Revenue guidance for the stated method and scope. This is not Revenue approval or endorsement.",
    "authorityNote": "Count.ie publishes the calculated example. The linked official sources, where present, remain authoritative for the underlying rules. No official endorsement or professional review is implied."
  },
  "sources": [
    {
      "label": "First Home Scheme eligibility",
      "url": "https://www.firsthomescheme.ie/about-the-scheme/eligibility"
    },
    {
      "label": "First Home Scheme rules and eligibility FAQs",
      "url": "https://www.firsthomescheme.ie/faqs/rules-and-eligibility"
    },
    {
      "label": "Revenue Help to Buy",
      "url": "https://www.revenue.ie/en/property/help-to-buy-incentive/index.aspx"
    }
  ],
  "frequentlyAskedQuestions": [
    {
      "question": "What happens if I increase household gross annual income (€) in this example?",
      "answer": "Changing household gross annual income (€) from 90,000 to 99,000, with the other example settings unchanged, changes max purchase budget from €405,000.00 to €441,000.00. This isolates one input using the form's actual calculation. Compare changes separately rather than attributing a difference to several assumptions at once."
    },
    {
      "question": "What assumptions should I check for First-time buyer maximum budget?",
      "answer": "Not mortgage approval or scheme approval. Help to Buy needs a price of €500,000 or less, mortgage at least 70% of price and four-year tax. FHS needs maximum mortgage, no macro-prudential exception, deposit plus HTB of 10%, equity from the higher of €10,000 or 2.5% up to 20% with HTB or 30% without, and a price inside your entered ceiling. The linked sources support the documented method, not every possible circumstance. Confirm transaction dates and eligibility where relevant, and distinguish a statutory rate from a rate you enter yourself."
    },
    {
      "question": "Is the Help to Buy cap always €35,000?",
      "answer": "No. The cap depends on the qualifying date: €35,000 applies only from 7 October 2026, while earlier supported dates use €30,000. It is also limited to 10% of the price and to the Income Tax and DIRT paid in the previous four years."
    },
    {
      "question": "Why can the budget be lower than the sum of my deposit, mortgage and schemes?",
      "answer": "Each source has its own boundary, such as the 70% qualifying finance test for Help to Buy, the 500,000 euro price cap and your local First Home Scheme ceiling. The result is the highest single price at which all of them hold together, not separate maxima added up."
    },
    {
      "question": "Does this result mean a lender or scheme will approve me?",
      "answer": "No. It is a planning budget from the figures you enter. Lender approval, Help to Buy approval, First Home Scheme eligibility, fees, stamp duty and affordability checks all need separate confirmation from the relevant provider."
    }
  ],
  "citation": {
    "publisher": "Count.ie",
    "title": "First-time buyer maximum budget: fixed worked example",
    "url": "https://count.ie/property/first-time-buyer-budget/#worked-example",
    "pageUpdatedOn": "2026-10-16",
    "text": "Count.ie. First-time buyer maximum budget: fixed worked example. Page updated 2026-10-16. https://count.ie/property/first-time-buyer-budget/#worked-example"
  },
  "relatedGuideUrl": "https://count.ie/guides/first-time-buyer-budget/",
  "privacyNote": "Generated at build time from public example settings. No visitor inputs, saved profiles or chat messages are included. Query parameters do not recalculate this file."
}