Government ministers are claiming that the Help to Buy equity loan scheme has "captured the imagination of the public" with over 15,000 reservations for new build homes in the first six months.
Newly-appointed Housing Minister Kris Hopkins said the equity loan scheme had given the housing market a kickstart by driving up the rate of housebuilding and helping hardworking families buy a home.
He claimed government action to restore confidence to the housing market was working, with over a third of a million new homes built over the last three years, including 150,000 affordable homes.
Since April, there have been 15,410 reservations for new-build homes, while nearly 30,000 people have bought a new-build property through a range of government-backed homeownership schemes over the last two years.
Industry critics have warned that Help to Buy, particularly the controversial mortgage guarantee, will create a property bubble unless the supply of new homes increases.
But Hopkins said that housebuilding is growing at its fastest rate for 10 years and is now at its highest since the end of the housing boom in 2008, with 334,000 new homes built over the last three years
In the most recent quarter, housing starts were up by 33% on last year, and planning approvals for new homes were up by 45%. Some 88% of planning applications were approved in the year to June 2013, a 10-year high
The number of first-time buyers is at a five-year high, while the number of repossessions is at its lowest level since 2007, he said.
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