If you purchased through a Help to Buy scheme, you’ll know that your home differs from others on the market, and therefore the sales process will be slightly different too. The method of selling your home will also depend on which scheme you used to buy.
The Government’s Help to Buy schemes include:
- Help to Buy: Equity Loans
- Help to Buy: Shared Ownership
- Help to Buy ISA
If you bought your home with a Help to Buy ISA, the selling process will be the same as any other property sale. However, if you used one of the other two Help to Buy schemes, the sales process may differ.
Coming up, we’ll run through what you should be aware of when selling a Help to Buy property.
How to sell a property bought via Help to Buy: Equity Loans?
What is an Equity Loan?
The government introduced the Help to Buy Equity Loan to help first-time buyers take their first step onto the ladder. Although the scheme ended in October 2022, the loan was offered to first-time buyers, and could be put towards the cost of buying a new build property.
First-time buyers had to put down at least 5% of the property price as a deposit in order to qualify for this loan.
Once this was agreed, the buyer could then borrow up to 20% of the market value of the home (or 40% in London) by using an equity loan from the government. Buyers could then make up the rest of the payments using a regular mortgage.
When can you sell?
You can sell your home at any time after purchasing through an Equity Loan, but when you do so, both the loan and mortgage will need to be repaid upon completion of the sale.
Step one: First, you should arrange for a professional property valuation to decide what your property is worth.
Step two: You will then be able to sell the property at the price agreed by the independent value. Bear in mind, your estate agent will not release the property for any less than the market valuation price.
Step three: After you’ve sold your property, you will need to repay the value of the loan as a percentage of the final sale price. In the case that the home sells for above market value, you will then need to repay the percentage of the actual sale price.
Find out what documents you need to sell a house
How to sell a property bought via Help to Buy: Shared Ownership?
What is Shared Ownership?
Shared Ownership is a government scheme, offering first-time buyers and those who do not currently own a home opportunity to purchase a share in a flat or house that’s being marketed as Shared Ownership
Designed to help those with small deposits and incomes get onto the property ladder, the premise is to buy a stake and pay rent on the leftover amount.
Find out more about the pros and cons of Shared Ownership
When can you sell a Shared Ownership property?
You can also sell a home purchased through Shared Ownership at any time.
Step one: First and foremost, you must notify your Housing Association (HA) or Registered Provider (RP) so you can be guided through the sales process.
Step two: You’ll need to arrange for a professional valuation from an approved surveyor from your HA or PR’s list of qualified individuals.
In most cases, your provider will have around two months to sell the home and if they find a buyer within this timeframe, they will go through a similar process that you went through when you bought the home.
Step three: If your provider fails to find a buyer during this time, you then have the freedom to sell your property through an estate agent of your choice.
