Help To Buy Isa

jaffy60

Hi I am looking for some advice regarding the no longer available H2BI.
Both my adult kids have the full amount invested and it's sat there waiting for the time they can afford to buy a place but like many others find that with the limit outside of London being £250K this means they won't qualify for any bonus as despite both willing to move out of their areas (to a limit) no prices are below that and house prices are hardly likely to come down in price and the maximum £250K not likely to increase.
We've looked into the Pro's and Cons of Lisa's and as it's likely they will buy with the next 3 years, so less time than it would take to transfer £4K over per tax year to fully transfer the H2BI balance, we're thinking just to knock the H2BI accounts & LISA thoughts on the head and get the money transferred in to a higher ISA rate account. Their latest H2BI rate is 1.1%
Just running it by those who are more knowledgeable on this subject than us. Is there something that we are missing that would be more beneficial? As to when they are buying that is crystal ball time but the hope is between 1- 3 years max. We just think this way is more simple so ready as and when needed, a better interest rate and the H2BI bonus is no longer a viable thing anyway.
Thank you for any advice/thoughts that you have.

Mark_d

I live a 20 minute train ride away from London and there are plenty of 2 bedroom apartments for sale on Rightmove for £250k and under.

For a first home you can't expect it to be your perfect property in your perfect location.  My first home was a 1 bedroom flat, an hour's train ride from my place of work.

I would always suggest buying sooner rather than later.  Maybe your kids can consider shared ownership schemes.

jaffy60

Thanks for that interesting to hear those prices. London too far from where they are with present jobs but maybe they need to consider looking into that avenue. We are South West. They definitely don't expect it to be perfect, they've lived with us long enough to experience living in a mess whilst their Dad did DIY when we bought places needing work as & when finances allowed. Yes shared ownership an option to consider. Thank you. 

masonic

Two years from now would span 3 tax years. They could have transferred £12k each by 6th April 2027, to bring the balances to £15k plus interest (once that last bonus is received). So might still be worth considering if the £250k limit is an issue. If they make the second contribution in March 2027, then they have de-risked the situation should they need to proceed sooner than that. If they could fund at least the first £4k each without withdrawing from the HTB ISA, they'd risk only £500.

Put in £1 now, and £3,999 in March 2026 to hedge the possibility of buying within the next 10 months. Next March they can decide if they'll realistically be able to buy within a year from then and decide whether to commit the rest of that first £4k.

Shared ownership can be very helpful, but it doesn't help with the house price limit, as that is still calculated on the market value of the whole property.

jaffy60

Thanks masonic that's actually a great idea about putting in a £1 now and reviewing the situation next March and not something we'd thought about. I really appreciate that reply.