Does anyone understand the old 2003 homebuy scheme pls

mooshy

Hi
So in 2003 we bought our home through the then open market homebuy.
We were given a 25 % deposiit from the Housing Association .We put down 10 % and had a mortgage for the remaining 65%.
We were told we owned the house outright.
We have the freehold .
The loan is repayable upon sale or if we decide to pay it.Its repayable at 25% of the gross value of the property at the time of sale . No interest or other clauses in between . So even if the house price falls we only repay the 25%.No rent ect.
Now its 2017 and we only have 55000 outstnding on the mortgage. House is worth around 200000.
We divorced last week ( after 25 years ) and my ex is going to transfer the title deeds into my name solely . I shall pay him out the agreed amount and its all been agreed properly through solicitors.
So we have a 25 % charge over the property which is now a different and may i say more difficult housing association.
When i approach the bank next week to obtain my remortgage Id like to take out enough to buy out my ex which I know is doable , and around 20000 extra to do repairs and home improvements .
Its taken me ages to get the HA to even find me on the system because noone seems to have heard of the old scheme. They seemed a little taken aback when i said i owned the property it was not shared ownership, until they confirmed I was the freeholder ? The lady has said off the record that this means I can do whatever I like as I own the freehold but shes waiting for the legal department to get all the info.She said I may just need permission for certain improvements .
What i dont want is to come out of the bank with a remortgage in process, only for the housing association to turn around and I say i can only remortgage if it was to repay the equity loan .
My conservatory is literally falling down as are the windows !

Theyre is plenty of equity in the home now but not enough for me to repay the loan just yet. maybe in a couple of years when im more on my feet .
Has anyone any experience/advice on the old scheme and where I stand ?
Thanks for reading .

silvercar

As I recall, the 25% is a second charge on the property and you do own the property.

A second charge holder won't have much influence on what you can and can't do. Though I'm not sure if you can borrow more money without the second charge holders consent, as they would want to be satisfied that there is enough equity in the property to cover their charge.

BorisThomson

A friend had a HTB around the same time, they were able to remortgage to release equity from the property and only had to repay when they sold. However, it may be that your HA attached different conditions to their lending, so you must check your paperwork (or ask for a copy if you do not have it) before proceeding. Don't commit to anything until you have clarified your position with your HA.

MacMickster

mooshy wrote: »

Hi
We divorced last week ( after 25 years ) and my ex is going to transfer the title deeds into my name solely . I shall pay him out the agreed amount and its all been agreed properly through solicitors.

My concern is that this could effectively be regarded as a sale of the property by 2 people to only one person, thereby triggering repayment of the housing association charge.

I would ask your solicitors to look into this on your behalf. Certainly don't rely on just a telephone conversation with a junior member of the HA's staff.