Help to buy 1, and early repayment charges

mad10426

Hi There, hoping someone can help out or to get some opinions.

I used the HTB scheme to purchase my current home - we are able to buy it out in 5 yrs so not worried about that choice, it was right for us.

At the time I purchased I had a mortgage with the Halifax, and the best HTB mortgage for us was the Halifax again. I was tied into this deal, and had redemption's associated with is that totalled £4k.

Because we had deadlines and the usual stress of buying a property I just went with it and paid them.
However In hindsight, I'm not sure why I paid them?

I was told that I could't port my rate over as we were moving to a new scheme, even though the borrowing remained with Halifax.

I have put a complaint in and I am awaiting a call from someone to take it further, as according to the Halifax policy they haven't done anything wrong, and from just looking at the policy they haven't.

I guess I'm questioning the whole procedure. Why did I have to pay those fees, why was it essential that I took a whole new rate? Why am I out of pocket around £3k (once we looked into if we had ported etc).

Bearing in mind that Halifax being part of lloyds banking group, have to support these help schemes. Surely penalising me and charging the erc is not treating me fairly and going against the ethos of helping someone buy a home.

Does anyone have any experience or further information regarding why this element of the process is allowed - or what the thinking behind it is. Just in case I've missed an important CML or HCA part of the procedure.

I was encouraged to complain by a Halifax representative who is of the opinion that this is not right.

Has anyone else complained about this or does anyone have any tips to take it further?

All help relating to the complaint will be greatly received!

Thrugelmir

mad10426 wrote: »

I was told that I could't port my rate over as we were moving to a new scheme, even though the borrowing remained with Halifax.

That's an internal commercial policy decision. You knew the terms of the offer when you accepted it. There's no grounds to complain. Porting unless expressly stated in the contractual terms of the existing product is not a right. Totally at the lenders discretion.

Which HTB scheme did you opt for?

kingstreet

Halifax won't allow a port to a HTB product, so no alternative but to pay ERC. After that, you would normally be better off moving to another lender as Halifax rates aren't great and their fees are high too.

mad10426

Thanks for you responses.

As I said I knew what I was doing, but wanted to challenge the commercial decision I suppose, so was not really complaining about the Halifax as such. I suppose just the unfairness of an internal procedure that has left me out of pocket.

I did equity loan HTB, and I am a mortgage broker so know all about what deals are out there.

kingstreet

As a newbuild and HTB specialist we've brought this up several times (when this has affected our clients with Halifax mortgages) and each time the reply has involved the specialist products they offer on HTB/Affordable Housing and how these are costed differently to non-HTB products.

Thrugelmir

mad10426 wrote: »

As I said I knew what I was doing, but wanted to challenge the commercial decision I suppose, so was not really complaining about the Halifax as such. I suppose just the unfairness of an internal procedure that has left me out of pocket.

HTB products come at a cost for lenders. Nothing unfair in a personal decision.

minimike2

It is common for HTB products to not be portable.

I don't really see what the basis of the complaint is. I am even more confused, as a mortgage broker, why you would feel a complaint to be warranted in this situation. The product was not portable. You knew when you signed up for it. You knew when you decided to move. You knew when you made your new mortgage application.

As a mortgage broker, you will know you port a product, not a loan and that if the terms state that product is not portable then that is what you are bound by? Your borrowing didn't "remain" with Halifax. You redeemed your borrowing with its non-portable product and started a brand new mortgage.

You wanted to move home, you knew this would mean paying an ERC. This is pretty much the start and end of this story. Buyers remorse isn't grounds for a complaint.