Islington Wharf

Homebuy Direct may not sound sexy but if you want to buy your own place to live its about as luscious as it gets.

You can get a brand new apartment in the landmark Islington Wharf development for 70 per cent of the asking price with the government and developer stumping up the rest.

You get a tres chic apartment in one of the best developments in town for three quarters of the price with the government and the developer funding the difference. No strings attached.

There are no restrictions about who can live there and you can buy the rest when you have the funds and when the market makes it most favourable. Or don’t bother!

There is no interest to pay for the first five years and after this period you simply pay a sliding scale percentage of the outstanding value each month, on top of your mortgage. Depending on interest rates, this may actually work out cheaper than the conveyancing needed to buy it outright. Crucially, there are no restrictions about who you can sell onto. It simply goes on the open market and you get the sale price less 30 per cent.

The scheme also gives you a 30 per cent cushion against price falls should the double dip come to pass. If you have to sell when values are low, the bank gets first call on the cash and if theres nothing left over when you have paid back the mortgage then thats it. The developer and the government dont get back their share and you can walk away with no debt.

You qualify for the scheme if you earn under 60,000 and do not currently have a mortgage. You dont need to be a key worker and you can have owned a property previously.

And all you need is a 5 per cent cash deposit which is around £3,500 on a one-bed place which currently start at £99,950 based on the full price.

What else? Well neither is it a dumping ground for units that wont sell. At Islington Wharf they range from a perfectly formed one-bed to a huge 1,046 sq ft two-bed duplex on the 18th and 19th floor with an outside terrace.

Its a building to make a home in rather than making cash for investors, developed by ISIS Waterside Regeneration, the company formed to make the most of sites owned by British Waterways.

The bathrooms and kitchens are a good spec and well done, so too the chic entrance areas. You also get access to a communal garden where you can enjoy a coffee and the papers or have friends over for a barbecue in your own back yard in the sky.

And its a nice address to have. Designed by Broadway Malyan, Islington Wharf stands at the entrance to New Islington, which is important. That part of the city is where stuff will keep on happening even when council belts are tightened.

Its got its own thriving corner shop and a coffee shop cum cafe will be opening before the end of the year.

The Metrolink stop, taking you right into the city centre or out to Media City or Ashton, is yards away.

Just down the road, new townhouses and apartments are being built at Eastgate and plans are being made to redevelop the old retail park on Great Ancoats Street.

New Islington already has a new health centre and park and new projects, like turning the old Ancoats Dispensary into offices, are underway.

Then theres the millions being invested in Manchester Citys Eastlands ground - who knows what opportunity that could bring?

But like all good things Homebuy Direct is coming to an end.

In fact you only have a week or so to sign up for the deal so all the paperwork can be completed before the money stops at the end of September.

Go and see for yourself. Have an ice-cream during this weekends Gellato festival and look around. If you go to the sales office before the 1st of August, you might even win the £1,500 of holiday vouchers up for grabs.

Trust me, youll be smitten. And if you are not then you may look back and think this was the love you lost.

Click here to register your interest.