Help to Buy Valuation

Homes England recommends that you get your valuation first, as without this, you will not know how much you need to borrow or to sell for.

The surveyor must:

• be both RICS qualified and registered
• be independent of any estate agent
• not be related or known to you
• inspect the inside of the property
• provide at least 3 comparable properties and sale prices

Now is the time to talk to and independent mortgage adviser who understands this process. We recommend our sister company FP Mortgages and if you quote SURVEY23 they will not charge you for their advice (normally £499).

You can repay all or some of your equity loan at any time. You can make part payments of at least 10% of the full repayment amount, based on what your home is worth at the time, to reduce how much you owe.

You must instruct a solicitor to carry out the various legal processes that are required.

You can find a solicitor on the Law Society’s website.

Complete and return the application form to our Customer Service team at customerservices@myhelptobuyloan.co.uk

You must provide your solicitor’s contact details and give the solicitor authority to act on your behalf.

Your application cannot progress until you have:

• sent them the valuation report
• paid the administration fee and any arrears
• completed and sent them the application form

You’ll need to pay an administration fee of £200 when you apply to repay your equity loan.

You’ll also have to clear any arrears or outstanding payments before you apply.

If you cannot clear your arrears, you may be able to:

• continue to apply if you agree to a payment plan
• clear the arrears at the same time you repay your equity loan

Your conveyancing solicitor will need to confirm that this is possible.

How to pay

You can pay our administrator by:

• online bank transfer
• debit or credit card by calling 0300 123 4123
• cheque

You must tell us if you pay online. Email customerservices@myhelptobuyloan.co.uk or call the number above to confirm.

Our Customer Service team is available 8am to 8pm, Monday to Friday and 9am to 1pm on Saturday (excluding UK public holidays).

Payment details

Bank name: Lloyds Bank PLC

Account name: EQGATEWAY RE HE HELP TO BUY ADMIN

Sort code: 30-80-12

Account number: 24501860

Reference: Your customer reference number or first line of your address and postcode.

We’ll send you and your solicitor a redemption (repayment) letter after you’ve sent us:

• the RICS valuation report
• your completed application form
• the administration fee

The letter will confirm:

• that you can repay your equity loan
• the percentage of equity loan you took out
• how much your repayment amounts will be, based on the valuation report

The repayment amount will include any outstanding interest, fees, and arrears.

We’ll send your solicitor a list of items they need to put into a ‘legal undertaking’. This is a legal agreement formalised in paperwork.

If the completion date on the undertaking is delayed by more than a week, we may need to create a new undertaking and repayment amount.

If you’re repaying all your equity loan, we will not be able to send you an ‘Authority to Complete’ (a form giving our permission) until you’ve repaid everything you owe. This includes any interest, fees, charges and arrears.

If the amount you repay is less than the total you owe, our Customer Service team can discuss setting up a payment plan. If they do this, they can then grant the ‘Authority to Complete’.

Our administrator will send the ‘Authority to Complete’ within 5 days of receiving the legal undertaking from your conveyancing solicitor (or when a payment plan has been agreed).

This means you can repay your equity loan and complete the repayment process.