Shared Equity Mortgages - Homebuy Schemes
The Government scheme backing this initiative is called HomeBuy. Shared Equity is the basis of the Government’s Open Market HomeBuy Scheme. As from April 2008 there are three HomeBuy options based on equity sharing to offer a choice in the type of home you can purchase through a shared equity scheme. The aim is to improve affordability for purchasers and provide more choice in the mortgage which purchasers can take out.
New Build HomeBuy
With this product purchasers can buy a minimum initial purchase of 25 per cent of a newly-built home. A housing provider can hold the remainder of the equity. The provider will be able to levy a charge of up to three per cent on their equity. A lower target average for the charge is set at 2.75 per cent.
Purchasers may buy further shares in their home when they can afford to do so - a process known as "staircasing". Under the New Build HomeBuy scheme, the financing is from a shared equity mortgage from the open market. To find out which shared equity mortgage is right for you would would need to seek mortgage advice. New Build schemes are generally part funded with grant from the Housing Corporation through its Affordable Housing Programme.
HomeBuy Direct
A new shared equity scheme designed to help up to 10,000 First-Time Buyers into affordable home ownership. The scheme will be offered on specific new build properties brought forward by developers. Buyers will be offered an equity loan of up to 30 per cent of the purchase price, co-funded by Government and the developer. General eligibility for HomeBuy Direct will be the same as for the other HomeBuy products ( households earning less than £60,000 who could not afford to buy a suitable property on the open market without assistance in the area where they live or work). Applicants will also be subject to an affordability check, designed to assess the size of equity share that they are able to afford and sustain.
The first HomeBuy Direct homes will be available to purchasers early in 2009. More >>
Open Market HomeBuy
Options are MyChoiceHomeBuy and Ownhome offered by appointed equity loan providers. MyChoiceHomeBuy provides an equity loan of between 15 to 50 per cent of the purchase price is provided by a partnership of eight housing associations named CHASE, each one of which is an equity loan provider. As a buyer you will be expected to raise finance to purchase between 50 and 85 per cent of a home on the open market. There will be an annual fee of 1.75 per cent on the equity loan in year one, payable on a monthly basis. The fee will increase annually by the Retail Price Index (RPI) plus one per cent. Purchasers are free to re-mortgage at any time but will need the equity loan provider's consent if the loan is still in place.
Ownhome is provided by a partnership between Places for People and The Co-operative Bank. Ownhome gives people the chance to take up to 40% of the value of the property in an equity loan from Places for People. They would pay nothing at all for the first five years on the equity loan. After these five years, a low rate would be paid on the sum - starting at a fixed rate of just 1.75% interest per year for the next five years, and then increasing to 3.75% interest per year from year eleven. The remainder would be funded through a conventional mortgage with The Co-operative Bank. There will be no premium or extra charges on the mortgage, and customers can choose from a range of competitive deals including fixed rate and tracker options. More >>