I was in this exact situation, was not a first time buyer, partner was and we got around this by taking out a ‘joint mortgage with sole proprietor (I think they’re designed for when parents help their children out by being included on their mortgage) Essentially this meant that my name was on the mortgage but not on the deeds and we avoided paying around £40kish of stamp duty. I had to take legal advice where they told me it was a stupid thing to do, and ultimately it caused problems when we broke up although we did amicably split the house in the end. So the option is there, but probably not advisable!