British homebuilder Persimmon Plc said the government's 'Help to Buy' equity loan scheme increased their sales in the spring all over the country. Reservations, which had begun in April 1, had increased by 30% compared with the same period last year. 'Help to Buy' is a program by the British government that assists first-time buyers to get their own homes. The program allowed homebuyers to loan 20% of the value of the property. 

Persimmon Chief Executive Officer Jeff Fairburn said, "The government's 'Help to Buy' equity loan offer has seen a strong take up in the market. We have now achieved over 1,700 reservations on this scheme." As the housing market grew robust, Persimmon was able to beat market expectations. The company increased its pretax profit by 40% and its revenue by 12%.

In addition to encouraging more sales, the 'Help to Buy' program also freed up Persimmon's capital. Since they did not have to allocate funds for equity loans anymore, the housebuilder said they were now able to invest in land and develop more sites.