Help to Buy ISA guide

kl1186

Hello,

My boyfriend and I are looking to buy a house in the next 18 months, he has never owned before so is going to open a Help To Buy ISA. I have owned a house so cannot open one of these. Can I open a Lifetime ISA and then both of us use our "bonuses" towards our deposit to buy a house together?

eskbanker

kl1186 wrote: »

Hello,

My boyfriend and I are looking to buy a house in the next 18 months, he has never owned before so is going to open a Help To Buy ISA. I have owned a house so cannot open one of these. Can I open a Lifetime ISA and then both of us use our "bonuses" towards our deposit to buy a house together?

The short answer is 'no', as you can't get a LISA bonus for a property purchase unless you're a first-time buyer, see point 3 at http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/lifetime-ISAs

MARTYM8`

cookie365 wrote: »

Is there any benefit to saving beyond £12000?

I know the government bonus will stop at that point, but since interest rates seem to be higher than other ISAs I'm thinking of using one purely as a cash ISA.

I know it'll take a few years to get to that point

Ask us in 2020 when you have saved £12,000 - the earliest possible date.

Our advice then may differ from our advice now!

Simon_century21

Hi all, silly sounding question here, but what's the definition of London for the ISA? My partner and I both have one but the only property we can afford is over the outer London limit. We wouldn't be able to afford it but it's a part buy, part rent. Confused how the ISA works in that case ��

Thanks for any help!

eskbanker

Simon_century21 wrote: »

Hi all, silly sounding question here, but what's the definition of London for the ISA?

See the last two pages of https://www.helptobuy.gov.uk/documents/2015/12/scheme-rules.pdf

adamburton

Hello, sorry if this is already covered but I'm not sure how to search the forum to find an answer.

It says in the MSE HTB-ISA guide that:

"You’re not supposed to contribute to a Help to Buy ISA and a cash ISA in the same year, but…The rules say you can’t open a cash ISA and a Help to Buy ISA at the same time in the same tax year. Though nothing prevents you opening a Help to Buy ISA if you have cash ISAs from previous years, or a stocks & shares ISA from any year."

I visited the Buckinghamshire Building Society HTB-ISA web page and it says:

"You may only pay into one Cash ISA including Help to Buy: ISA per tax year."

(sorry, forum software will not allow me to post a link to the Buckinghamshire BS web site)

What is the difference between opening a cash ISA and paying into a cash ISA? I opened my cash ISA several years ago but have paid into it this year.

So who is right? MSE or Buckinghamshire BS? Or am I misunderstanding something?

Will I have to wait until 6th of April 2017 before I can open a HTB-ISA?

Thanks so much for any advice.
Bye,
Adam.

eskbanker

The Buckinghamshire BS quote is more accurate than the MSE one in that the rule is indeed about restrictions on paying into cash ISAs not opening them.

Your quote from the MSE HTB ISA page is followed by explanations of split ISAs (which would allow you to pay into both an HTB ISA and a normal cash ISA with the same provider in the same tax year) and also a section entitled "What should I do if I've already opened a cash ISA?" (which should actually be 'paid into' not 'opened'!)....

Rich2808

Simon_century21 wrote: »

Hi all, silly sounding question here, but what's the definition of London for the ISA? My partner and I both have one but the only property we can afford is over the outer London limit. We wouldn't be able to afford it but it's a part buy, part rent. Confused how the ISA works in that case ��

Thanks for any help!

Must be located in one of the 32 London boroughs or the Corporation of London - anywhere Sadiq Khan is Mayor.

You can search for which authority a property is in if you have the postcode. Or ask us - I know London well as to what's in and what's outl

https://www.gov.uk/find-local-council

If you use the lifetime ISA though from April it doesn't matter as the limit is £450k everywhere. You must be under 40 to open that but the HTB ISA has no age limit.

adamburton

Thanks, I'll have a look into the split ones.
Bye,
Adam.

[Deleted User]

Can a HTB ISA be transferred to a cash ISA the following year? If you open a split isa (HTB and easy access ISA with the same provider) this year, can you transfer the HTB and easy access ISA separately to different providers the following year?