The government’s Help to Buy scheme, launched in 2013, helped people struggling to get a foot on the property ladder. Around 340,000 buyers have taken advantage of it during that time.
In East London, the scheme offered first-time buyers an equity loan of up to 40% of a property’s value but only applied to new builds costing up to £600,000 (other property values apply elsewhere in the country). This comfortably fell under the average house price of £514,979 in areas like Barking, Dagenham, Ilford, Romford and Redbridge – making it very helpful.
At the same time, the government introduced a shared ownership scheme to help other buyers get onto the property ladder more quickly, even if they needed more money to afford the entire deposit. While this offer isn’t available to London residents earning over £90,000 per year, it’s easily viable for the average East London resident who earns £32,000.
However, both these schemes have extra requirements when you choose to sell your property – this remains the case even though the Help to Buy: Equity scheme has now finished.
Selling your Help to Buy or Shared Ownership property is possible, but there are rules you must follow. Read on for answers to frequently asked questions about selling a Help to Buy home.
Buying and selling at the same time?
Here are 10 things that could go wrong, and often do go wrong, and what, if anything, you can do to avoid them.
Buying and selling at the same time?
Here are 10 things that could go wrong, and often do go wrong, and what, if anything, you can do to avoid them.
Help to Buy offered equity loans to first-time buyers towards the cost of a new-build home. Only buyers who had never owned a home were eligible and needed to live in the property rather than renting it out.
The property had to be a new home constructed by a builder registered with the scheme. There were also limits on the maximum purchase price, which varied around the country (£600,000 in London).
People who bought homes using the scheme could pay a minimum deposit of 5% of the purchase price and take out a mortgage for at least 25%. The scheme offered equity loans for 5% to 40% of the purchase price in London (or up to 20% elsewhere).
The scheme allowed buyers to refrain from paying any interest on the loan for the first five years. They then pay interest at 1.75% in the sixth year, increasing every April. If you can, paying off the loan in the first five years is a good idea.
Yes, but there may be certain things you’ll need to do. If you have already paid back the loan or can do so before you find a buyer, your transaction will be the same as with any other sale.
If you still need to repay the loan, contact the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) responsible for the scheme. Then, you must have the property valued by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) registered surveyor.
The rules say that the Help to Buy equity loan must be paid back after 25 years or if the property is sold. Unless you have paid back the loan already, it will need to be paid from the equity in the property, released when you sell.
Want to feel prepared before you sell? Learn about the process of selling a house and our tips for selling your house.
If you want to repay the loan before selling, you can do so in 10% instalments. If you have already paid some of these instalments, you must pay the rest of the loan when you sell.
How much you pay will depend on the home’s current market value. You will pay back the same percentage as you borrowed – but as a percentage of your property’s current worth. So, if the property has risen in value, you will pay more, but if it has fallen in value – as new builds sometimes do – you will pay less.
As an example,
If you bought your home for £200,000 and took out a Help to Buy loan of 40%, your loan would have been for £80,000.
You’ll need to contact the HCA via Target – the financial services company that administers the loans for the HCA.
You’ll then need to get a market valuation report from a RICS registered chartered surveyor. How much you need to pay back will be calculated using this valuation or the agreed sale price, whichever is the highest.
The surveyor will give their valuation to Target and you will need to pay an admin fee of £200.
The valuation lasts for three months – if you don’t pay back the loan within this time, you’ll need to pay for another valuation.
You can sell your Help to Buy home at any time. However, waiting a few years should increase your home’s value, giving you the equity you need to repay the loan. Whether or not you sell, it is a good idea to repay the equity loan before the five years are up and you start accruing interest.
Most Help to Buy properties will have been bought using a bespoke Help to Buy mortgage, so you may need to shift to another product when you move house. Some Help to Buy mortgages are portable, and some companies will waive early repayment fees if you move to a different loan with them. Talk to your lender or a mortgage broker for advice.
Shared Ownership properties work differently, and you must follow specific steps to sell them.
Shared Ownership is a house-buying scheme devised by the government. It stands out because it lets buyers purchase a share of a home (rather than the whole property). However, many providers allow buyers to purchase up to 100% of the property over time.
This is ideal for buyers who cannot save up for a large deposit or are having difficulty getting a mortgage through conventional means. Buyers purchase a percentage of the property and then pay ‘rent’ on the remaining amount.
Thankfully, selling a property you’ve bought under a shared ownership scheme is relatively easy. You can sell your home whenever you like, but you must follow the correct process.
If you’ve bought 100% of your home through ‘staircasing‘, selling your home on the open market should be possible.
You will often own a certain percentage of the home, so you’ll have to go through a specific procedure with your Registered Provider (RP) or Housing Association (HA). Here are the steps you’ll need to take:
If you want to sell your Help to Buy property, contact us. We’d be happy to advise you about the process and offer you a no-obligation market appraisal of your property to help you weigh up your options.
Selling your house can be a complicated process, but breaking it down can make it less intimidating. That’s why we have compiled this step-by-step guide to the process of selling a house in east London. Whether you’re selling for the first time, are buying at the same time, or just aren’t sure what the current advice is in 2026, read on for tips on how to sell your house. We’ll talk you through everything from mortgage matters to professional photography. We also answer your frequently asked questions about the selling process. Find out more.
When you inherit a property, there will be decisions to make regarding whether to sell the property, live in it yourself or rent it out, and there will be legal processes to follow.
If you are wondering what the next steps are then this guide explains how the probate process works, what tax obligations you may have and which documents you will need if you decide to sell the property.
We also cover the different options you have for selling an inherited property and answer some of the most common questions about inheriting a property.
If you are looking for a fast house sale, there are several ways that you can improve the chances of a quick sale. Choosing an experienced local estate agent will help to speed up the sale but you can also get your paperwork prepared and make sure that your property is presented well to attract more viewings and prospective buyers.
Read our tips on how to sell a house quickly in East London for a full guide on the actions you can take to help to achieve a faster property sale.
