About us Tools Our Homes Careers Contact us Offers » Help to buy HELP TO BUY SCHEME – WHAT IS IT AND HOW DOES IT WORK? The Help to Buy scheme helps to make buying your first home much more affordable with a lower deposit that’s topped up with an equity loan. You could move into a brand new home with as little as a 5% deposit. Is it right for you? Let’s find out. HELP TO BUY: IMPORTANT THINGS TO REMEMBER First-time buyers only The scheme is only available for first-time buyers. This is defined as someone who’s never owned a property before in the UK or overseas. If you’re buying with someone else, they need to be a first-time buyer, too. Your property price matters If you’re hoping to buy a home through the Help to Buy scheme, you’ll need to consider the property price. The maximum price will depend on where you’re buying. For example, in London, the maximum property price eligible for Help to Buy is £600,000. In the North West, however, it’s £224,000. Here’s the full list: London: £600,000 South East: £437,600 East of England: £407,400 South West: £349,000 East Midlands: £261,900 West Midlands: £255,600 Yorkshire and The Humber: £228,100 North West: £224,400 North East: £186,100 If the property you’re hoping to buy exceeds the maximum value based on its location, you won’t be able to benefit from the Help to Buy scheme. New build homes The Help to Buy scheme is only available on new build homes. You won’t be able to use the equity loan to buy a home that’s already been lived in. As well as being a new build, your home must also have been built by a registered Help to Buy homebuilder, like Bloor Homes. HOW DOES THE HELP TO BUY SCHEME WORK? To buy a home through the Help to Buy scheme, you need to have a 5% deposit. Then, the government will provide you with an equity loan of up to 20% of the property price (up to 40% in London). You’ll then need to secure a mortgage for the remaining amount. 5% of your savings: This is your deposit and it needs to be at least 5%, however, you can pay more up to a maximum of 55%. 20% equity loan: Use this to boost your deposit. For example, if your savings are 5%, you can use your equity loan to make a total deposit of 25%. 75% mortgage: Arrange for a mortgage to pay back the remaining balance for your home. Find out how much you could afford by using this Help to Buy calculator. HOW DO I PAY OFF THE HELP TO BUY EQUITY LOAN? The Help to Buy equity loan is interest-free for the first 5 years. From year 6 onwards, you will start to pay interest fees on your equity loan. These interest fees will initially be calculated at 1.75% of the outstanding equity loan amount and will increase year on year. You can pay off all or part of your equity loan at any time. If you wish to pay off parts of your equity loan, you can – this is called ‘staircasing’. When made, part payments must be at least 10% of what your home is worth at the time of repayment. When working out which way is best for you to pay off your Help to Buy equity loan, you’ll need to factor in the costs for a valuation and legal fees. With this in mind, you may decide it’s cheaper to pay your equity loan off in one go. For the duration of your equity loan, you’ll need to pay a £1 monthly management fee by Direct Debit. These payments will continue until your equity loan has been paid in full. This, alongside the interest fees you’ll pay after year 5, won’t reduce the amount you owe, as they don’t go towards paying back your Help to Buy equity loan. IS HELP TO BUY A GOOD IDEA? For first-time buyers looking to get on the property ladder, the Help to Buy scheme definitely has its benefits. Here are some of the main ones. Smaller deposit Saving a deposit for a house can take years. By offering you an equity loan, however, the Help to Buy scheme gives you the chance to buy your first home with a smaller mortgage, even if you only have a 5% deposit. Cheaper mortgage The Help to Buy equity loan boosts your deposit, which means you’re able to access cheaper mortgage rates. After all, the lower your loan value, the more competitive your mortgage rate will be. A new home The scheme gives you the chance to buy a new build home, with brand new fixtures and fittings. The perfect blank canvas that’s ready to make it your own as soon as you move in. HOW DO I APPLY FOR THE HELP TO BUY SCHEME? If all of this sounds good to you, then we’ll help you to get everything moving. Here’s how the process works: 1) Select your Bloor home at one of our participating developments. Then, pay the reservation fee of £500 to secure your dream home. 2) Apply for the Help to Buy equity loan through the relevant government appointed Help to Buy Agent. 3) Once approved, you’ll be given an ‘Authority to Proceed’. 4) We’ll help you to choose a solicitor and independent financial adviser to make sure the purchase of your new home runs smoothly. 5) You will then need to apply for the required mortgage amount (up to 75%). 6) Now’s the time to sit back and relax while we get your new home ready. Don’t worry, though, we’ll provide you with plenty of updates along the way. 7) Then, once everything’s finalised, you can move into your new home and start your exciting journey as a new homeowner. Ready? To get started or find out more information about the Help to Buy scheme, get in touch with us by calling 01530 270 100 or by sending an email to hq@bloorhomes.com. Back to Offers View Developments FAQ'S Do you have a few questions about the Help to Buy scheme? Please take a look through our FAQ's below, where your questions will be answered... CAN YOU CLARIFY THE EQUITY LOAN ELEMENT? WHAT ARE THE REPAYMENT TERMS OF THE EQUITY LOAN? IS THE SCHEME AVAILABLE ON PRE-OWNED HOMES? CAN I USE THE SCHEME IF I ALREADY OWN A HOME? IS THE SCHEME AVAILABLE AS A BUY-TO-LET OPTION? WHAT MORTGAGE TYPES ARE AVAILABLE WITH HELP TO BUY? WHERE CAN I GET FINANCIAL ADVICE FROM? *Help to Buy and all Bloor Homes’ incentives and schemes are subject to terms and conditions and are available on selected developments and selected plots only. Help to Buy is available on selected new homes in England, within the set regional price cap, and is available to first time buyers only. For full details on plot eligibility, please speak with the Sales Team. Images are representative only, are intended to be a preliminary guide and should not be relied upon. Full terms and conditions can be found here. Scroll to top Connect Facebook Youtube Linked in About us Why Choose Bloor? 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