Help to Buy ISA guide

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  • steffernie
    steffernie Posts: 4 Newbie
    Apologies if this has been answered somewhere in the convo.


    We have booked a new build house, and are due to pay a 5% deposit to developers in approx. 5 weeks.

    We are getting a 95% mortgage and have the money for deposit in current account. We also have a help to buy isa each (2k in one and 1800 in other).

    My question is, do I close the ISAs now and use them towards the 5% deposit (which will in turn be our 5% purchase price towards house) or do we have to wait until completion - which will be the end of July? Which will then mean we are owed money back?
  • Jaunty_One
    Jaunty_One Posts: 47 Forumite
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    Rhysd007 wrote: »
    Hi guys, bit of an urgent one here, wondering if anyone can help. I am due to complete this week, but solicitors are saying that claiming the Help2Buy will delay by possibly 28 days.

    I've checked helptobuyadmin website and they say 5 business days, with possibilities of a 'fast-track' option.

    Has anyone cashed theirs in yet, and how long did it take? Much appreciated guys.

    Hi Rhys, how did it go? I'm in the same boat as you and wondering how long before the bonus is received.
  • Marblehead_2
    Marblehead_2 Posts: 16 Forumite
    Jaunty_One wrote: »
    Hi everyone

    Apologies if this has been answered already (feel free to direct me to a relevant post).

    I've just exchanged and have a completion date of May 9th. I'm wondering how long the process takes regarding receiving the interest from the government via your solicitor. I wanted to wait until May 1st to close the account to bag the extra 50 squid :cool:

    I'm part of a chain and any delay will cause complications. I suppose it might be like asking how long is a piece of sting(!). Can anyone help?

    By the way, I've been trying to buy since Feb 2014 and lost money/time on four other properties so if you're a fellow first time buyer that has made it this far, seriously pat yourself on the back; I bet it hasn't been easy!! :www:

    I closed mine on Tuesday 1st March with a completion date of Monday 7th March which was fine. I was with Halifax, who gave me the necessary closure documents on the spot when I closed the account in person - if you are with another ISA provider, check what their process is (I think some send the documents by post). Also make sure your solicitor is registered on the scheme and knows what they are doing - they will have to get you to complete the first time buyer declaration etc.

    The only thing to keep in mind is 1st May is a Sunday, and 2nd is a bank holiday, but if you close on Tuesday 3rd you should theoretically be able to get the bonus in time for completion on Monday 9th, as that is the same timeframe I had :)
  • Jaunty_One
    Jaunty_One Posts: 47 Forumite
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    Marblehead, you are a Godsend, thanks so much!
  • Jaunty_One
    Jaunty_One Posts: 47 Forumite
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    Nozza86 wrote: »
    You CAN use the bonus towards your deposit. Me and my partner completed on our house purchase last week and used the bonus towards our deposit - we transferred our deposit and cost of fees to our solicitors minus the bonus of £900 we were due from the government on the same day our solicitor put the claim in for our bonus... 5 days later they received the £900 from the government and we completed.

    Hope that puts people's minds at ease!

    That does help a little Nozza

    I've just exchanged today with completion due on May 9th. I'll head to Nationwide to close my HTB ISA tomorrow, but they say it may take 3-5 working days to receive the closure letter by post. :(

    I'm part of a chain and worry this could sabotage completion; it's also a bank holiday weekend. Does the government bonus have to be received before completion? Wishful thinking but maybe I could receive it as back pay a few days after completion. It's not as though I'm lying about anything just to get the interest.
  • eskbanker
    eskbanker Posts: 30,995 Forumite
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    steffernie wrote: »
    Apologies if this has been answered somewhere in the convo.


    We have booked a new build house, and are due to pay a 5% deposit to developers in approx. 5 weeks.

    We are getting a 95% mortgage and have the money for deposit in current account. We also have a help to buy isa each (2k in one and 1800 in other).

    My question is, do I close the ISAs now and use them towards the 5% deposit (which will in turn be our 5% purchase price towards house) or do we have to wait until completion - which will be the end of July? Which will then mean we are owed money back?
    You can't use the HTB money towards the 5% due to the developers, it can only be used to contribute to funds needed at the point of completion. In effect this means you can only use it to reduce the size of the mortgage by £3800 (or maybe £5K by July) plus bonus.
  • Jaunty_One
    Jaunty_One Posts: 47 Forumite
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    Marblehead wrote: »
    I closed mine on Tuesday 1st March with a completion date of Monday 7th March which was fine. I was with Halifax, who gave me the necessary closure documents on the spot when I closed the account in person - if you are with another ISA provider, check what their process is (I think some send the documents by post). Also make sure your solicitor is registered on the scheme and knows what they are doing - they will have to get you to complete the first time buyer declaration etc.

    The only thing to keep in mind is 1st May is a Sunday, and 2nd is a bank holiday, but if you close on Tuesday 3rd you should theoretically be able to get the bonus in time for completion on Monday 9th, as that is the same timeframe I had :)

    Does anyone know what the HTB ISA closure letter/statement looks like, in terms of what additional information it contains?

    My ISA was with Nationwide and it may take up to 5 working days to receive the closure letter in the post, plus, I'm very close to my completion date (May 9th) so I asked what they could do in-branch, and the manager was kind enough to put the date of closure, amount saved, phone number and account number with his signature.

    Surely that's enough evidence for my solicitor/the government? Right??:huh:
  • eskbanker
    eskbanker Posts: 30,995 Forumite
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    Jaunty_One wrote: »
    Does anyone know what the HTB ISA closure letter/statement looks like, in terms of what additional information it contains?
    See page 60 of https://www.helptobuy.gov.uk/documents/2015/12/scheme-rules.pdf for what needs to be included in the closing documentation....
  • Jaunty_One
    Jaunty_One Posts: 47 Forumite
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    edited 29 April 2016 at 6:46PM
    Thank you very much eskbanker! After reading it, I'll probably have more luck just waiting for the official closure letter; I can see A LOT of info missing from mine.
  • sharon2345
    sharon2345 Posts: 35 Forumite
    How does the lender or govt find out whether you are indeed a first time buyer?

    I understand that it is one of criteria but how do they check this?
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