Help to Buy ISA, help! 28 September 2016 at 3:28PM edited 30 November -1 at 1:00AM in ISAs & Tax-free Savings 3 replies 1.2K views

AD13

Hi I recently opened a HTB ISA and will be purchasing a property in 6 months - I realise we won't be getting the max bonus, but every little helps!

I know it's been recently widely reported that you don't get the gov bonus until completion of the property - as ours won't be a large sum that's not an issue. What I'm wondering about is the £2,000 or so of my savings that I'll have periodically deposited into the account that I'll be wanting to use at the exchange deposit stage.

I've read that if you withdraw your cash early you won't get the bonus but what I want to know is can I use the £2k of my own savings, from the HTB ISA account, for the deposit and still receive the 25% of £2k bonus upon completion? Or will it show my ISA balance as £0 therefore I won't get the bonus?

I don't want the money I've saved + the bonus to only be available after completion, but I also don't want to lose the bonus.

thanks!

Ed-1

AD13 wrote: »

Hi I recently opened a HTB ISA and will be purchasing a property in 6 months - I realise we won't be getting the max bonus, but every little helps!

I know it's been recently widely reported that you don't get the gov bonus until completion of the property - as ours won't be a large sum that's not an issue. What I'm wondering about is the £2,000 or so of my savings that I'll have periodically deposited into the account that I'll be wanting to use at the exchange deposit stage.

I've read that if you withdraw your cash early you won't get the bonus but what I want to know is can I use the £2k of my own savings, from the HTB ISA account, for the deposit and still receive the 25% of £2k bonus upon completion? Or will it show my ISA balance as £0 therefore I won't get the bonus?

I don't want the money I've saved + the bonus to only be available after completion, but I also don't want to lose the bonus.

thanks!

As soon as you close the account, you'll have the money you deposited plus interest. However the government don't send the bonus to your mortgage provider until the property purchase transaction has completed and the mortgage has been granted.

AD13

OK thanks so I can close the account, exchange and use the money+interest towards deposit, and then get the bonus later? That doesn't count as closing the account early?

Ed-1

AD13 wrote: »

OK thanks so I can close the account, exchange and use the money+interest towards deposit, and then get the bonus later? That doesn't count as closing the account early?

You get the bonus on whatever amount was in the account at the time you close it (the bank gives you a closing statement to forward to the conveyancer who then claims the bonus). You can't get the bonus if you don't close it!