|
|
What is HomeBuy?
HomeBuy is a government-funded low-cost home-ownership programme that offers several schemes aimed at helping first time buyers, key workers and others who cannot afford to buy a suitable home in the area where they live or work.
There are four main products, all of which are available in Elmbridge. The following guide provides a general overview only. Thames Valley Housing provides a one-stop shop where you can find out about the products available. For more inromation please visit their website or by telephoning 0845 600 6699.
1. New build HomeBuy
This is a part-buy / part-rent scheme, formerly known as shared-ownership, where you can buy a percentage of the value of a property (normally with funds from a mortgage) and pay a subsidised rent on the remaining percentage to the housing association which owns the freehold. Your monthly payments on the property are split between the mortgage payment and the rent, as well as any service charge that applies. The total monthly payment should be less than would be the case if you were purchasing the property fully on the open market. You can buy further shares when you can afford to. This is a process known as staircasing. When you buy the property outright, no further rent is payable.
In very general terms, single person households would need an income of around £23,000 plus, whilst couples would need an income of £27,000 plus. These are however rough guidelines and can change quickly as prices vary.
Equity Loans
From April 2008, there are two schemes in place available in Surrey designed to help people who cannot currently afford to purchase suitable accommodation on the open market to take their first step onto the property ladder. Both schemes are part-funded by the Government.
2. OwnHome
OwnHome is a package delivered by Places for People in partnership with the Co-operative Bank. The scheme can provide eligible households funding for up to 100% of the value of the property. Up to 40% of this comes from an Ownhome loan from Places for People with no interest payments for the first five years, with the remainder coming from a mortgages arranged with the Co-operative Bank. This means that if you qualify for a mortgage of £120,000 you may be able to buy a home worth £200,000.
For further information please visit www.ownhome.co.uk or call 0845 607 0110. To apply, telephone 0845 607 0110 between 9am and 8pm Monday to Friday or 9am and 2pm on Saturdays. For more information visit www.ownhome.co.uk
3. MyChoiceHomeBuy
MyChoiceHomeBuy is an equity loan scheme designed to help people earning between £20,000 and £60,000 pa to buy their own home, probably through an estate agent, on the open market. The purchase price of the property is determined by average local market property prices and the availability of funding. Thames Valley Housing will operate this scheme in Surrey. For more information or to apply, visit please visit their website or telephone 0845 600 6699.
Thames Valley Housing will give successful applicants a loan to top up their mortgage of up to 50% towards the cost of a selected property. There will be a charge of 1.5% per annum on the loan.
Households will need to obtain a mortgage and also have some savings for the legal fees incurred in buying their home. If Thames Valley Housing approves the purchase of a property, then the household will pay a percentage of the purchase price with a mortgage and any savings they have, with an equity loan provided for the balance. Applicants will be responsible for arranging a mortgage through an independent financial adviser, bank or building society.
As of 23 April 2008, MyChoiceHomeBuy scheme is not yet available, but will be launched shortly, subject to confirmation from the Office of Fair Trading.
For more information visit |MyChoiceHomeBuy website
For both schemes
To be eligible under these schemes, households should earn less than £60,000 per annum and should be one or more of the following:
A public sector key worker as defined under 'Key Worker Living' criterion in the South East
A social housing tenant
A first-time buyer
An applicant on a social housing register
In some cases, help can be offered to households who are not first-time buyers, for example, those who are seeking a new home following relationship breakdown or they have outgrown existing arrangements.
You do not have to be on Elmbridge Borough Council's Housing Register to be considered for either scheme, if you meet one of the other criteria.
There are no restrictions on the use of purchaser deposits, so the loan can be used in conjunction with any deposit you may have. After completion, applicants have the option of purchasing the remaining share of the property at any time to attain full ownership.
4. Discounted rent
This scheme is also known as sub-market rent. The rents vary, but you are likely to pay around 80% of the local market rent for the type of property you live in. The tenancies are offered as assured shorthold tenancies (rather than long-term tenancies) and your landlord would normally be a housing association. To be eligible to become a tenant on these schemes, you must normally be a key-worker.
| Related Pages: |
| Shared ownership |Homebuy - what's available locally (Pages) |
| |Homebuy questions (Pages) |