Get early bird tickets to our brand new show
30th-31st May 2026 - time to get your dream home started!
GET TWO FREE TICKETS HERE30th-31st May 2026 - time to get your dream home started!
GET TWO FREE TICKETS HEREEstimate your project costs instantly with Build It's interactive self-build cost calculator
Calculate NowGet an accurate, detailed cost breakdown of your project
Submit plansHi, I was just wondering on the rules around using the Lifetime ISA for self builds. I can’t seem to find any advice or answers online. We already own the land, however we would just be looking for a mortgage on the build itself and the construction. Would we be able to avail of the government bonus for that mortgage, or will we not qualify for it?
Hi Niall,
Thank you for reaching out to us. We’re contacting a few experts for their advice and will get back to you with some thoughts as soon as possible.
Many thanks,
Amandine
I have the same question and can’t find information on this anywhere – keen to be updated with a response too!
I’m by no means an expert in finance & legals… but my understanding is that you can only claim the LISA bonus (and avoid withdrawal penalties) if your mortgage-backed purchase includes a ‘legal interest in land’.
In other words, as a self builder (and first-time buyer) you would need to be actively buying the right to possess, use and control the land.
If you are purchasing land with a LISA-backed mortgage, you could potentially do so with a mortgage that also funds the build. But it doesn’t seem like you can use it for build-only if you already hold that legal interest in the land.
Whether there are any workarounds here, I don’t know. As you’ve probably gathered from your own attempt at researching it, using a LISA to self build doesn’t happen as often as we might like… and there’s not much knowledge sharing around it!
Chris Batesmith, Content Director at Build It