This information is for solicitors acting on behalf of clients purchasing a home through Help to Buy: Equity Loan.
Solicitors’ Pack – Help to Buy: Equity Loan
Please download the solicitors’ pack (PDF,648KB)which includes information about the Help to Buy: Equity Loan scheme, legal undertakings and guidance on how to fill in the various forms.
Documents we will need before exchange of contracts
You must not arrange for exchange contracts until we have received the following items from you and issued you with our authority to exchange.
- Completed form one (WORD DOC, 41KB)
- Copy of your client’s mortgage offer
- Valuation Report and Council of Mortgage Lenders certificate.
Documents we will need before completion of sale
You must not complete the property purchase until we have received the following items from you and issued you with our authority to complete:
Our timescales for issuing out the most important documentation are:
- Authority to exchange – three working days
- Authority to complete – two working days
Frequently asked questions
About Help to Buy schemes
We have published a list of frequently asked questions about how Help to Buy schemes work:
Solicitor FAQs
We are acting for a buyer. When will we receive their approval documents?
We will always send the documentation out to the solicitor that has been listed on the Property Information Form. If you haven’t received the documents then please get in touch and we can look in to the case for you.
Where do the Equity Loan funds come from?
The equity loan funds are released through the Investment Management System (IMS) and will go to the bank account that is set up by the property developer when they apply for Help to Buy. To ensure funds are received on completion we advise that there is a twelve (working) day gap between exchange and completion.
The valuation price has come back at lower than the selling price, can we still proceed?
No. We will not allow a case to proceed if it has been valued at less than the full purchase price. The property will have to be either re-valued or the builder will need to sell at a lower price.
How long is the Authority to Proceed valid for?
The Authority to Proceed is valid for three months. Within this period of time we would expect to have received the pre exchange documents, issued out an Authority to Exchange, and for Exchange of Contracts to have taken place.
Where are the equity loan funds sent to?
When a developer registers for Help to Buy they have to provide bank details of where they want the equity loan funds to go to. The funds will be sent to that bank account.
The figures on the mortgage offer don’t match the Authority to Proceed on file, what do I need to do?
The figures that are on the Authority to Proceed are the figures that we gave the applicant(s) approval on. If the figures differ then we will need to issue out an amended Authority to Proceed. In order for us to do this, we will have to run the new figures through our Affordability Calculator so there is no guarantee that the figures will be amended.
What is a Confirmation of Exchange (CEF)?
A CEF is a confirmation of exchange form. It will be sent out with the Authority to Exchange. The form should be completed and sent back to us within two working days from when exchange takes place.
Once contracts are exchanged, how long will it take until completion?
If completion doesn’t take place within six months of exchange, the house builder will need to contact Homes England to request an extension.
More information
If you have been unable to find the answer to your query, please contact us.