Help to buy

Help to Buy is the name used for the government funded initiative of affordable home ownership schemes. These are designed to help people who cannot afford to buy a home that is suitable for the needs of their household.

The Help to Buy scheme is made up of two parts:

  • An ‘equity loan’, where the government will lend you up to 20% of the value of your newly built home
  • A ‘mortgage guarantee’, where the government will guarantee part of your mortgage if you only have a small deposit

This option is available to all those who aspire to own a new-build home, but struggle to access or afford the repayments on a low deposit mortgage. It is only available to first time buyers.

Key points

  • The government will lend the client up to 20% (40% in London) of the value of the property through an equity loan, which can be repaid at any time or on the sale of the home.
  • The maximum full purchase price is £600,000.
  • There are no payments on the loan for the first five years.
  • After five years, there is a fee of 1.75%, which increases annually in line with RPI plus 1%.
  • The client will need to obtain a mortgage to purchase through this scheme.
  • The client will need a minimum of 5% deposit.

Your property may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage.

A further element of the Help to Buy scheme is the government-backed mortgage indemnity guarantee scheme. This became available to lenders to help them provide more mortgages to all types of homeowners who can’t afford a large deposit.

Key points

  • Can be used towards a newly built home or an existing property.
  • The client will need a 5% deposit.
  • Available to existing homeowners as well as first-time buyers.
  • The maximum full purchase price is £600,000.

Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage.

If you want to buy using the help to buy scheme then please call Downton and Ali on 020 3021 0075 and we will be glad to help.

If you have any questions, or if there’s anything you’d like explained, please speak to one of our team on 020 3021 0075 or email us at info@downtonandali.co.uk