Help-to-buy paperwork delays still endangering property sales and remortgages | Help-to-buy scheme

Homeowners who used the government’s help-to-buy loan scheme to buy a property are still reporting delays in getting hold of vital paperwork, weeks after the agency that runs the programme said it was working to put things right.

Borrowers have reported that sales have been put at risk and remortgages delayed by problems at Homes England, resulting in them facing higher losses.

One borrower, who did not want to be named, said he and his wife had been attempting to remortgage their property, a house in south-west England, for several weeks.

Their solicitor requested paperwork on 2 July, and then again on 12 July when the first request had been lost. Although the government website says it will be provided within five days, they said they were still trying to get hold of it.

“My new mortgage offer expires on 6 August,” he said. “If the mortgage offer expires, my wife and I will be forced to search the mortgage market again and will not be able to find a mortgage product that will be at a low enough rate to enable us to repay the equity loan. This is going to leave us thousands and thousands of pounds out of pocket – quite probably tens of thousands of pounds out of pocket.”

Help to buy was introduced in 2013 to support people getting on the housing ladder, and was closed to new applicants in October 2022. More than 380,000 households have used the scheme.

Borrowers must repay the loan if they sell, or start paying interest on it after five years. Many of those attempting to remortgage are planning to pay off their help-to-buy loan at the same time.

Problems with the scheme emerged last month after the administration work moved to a new company called Lenvi. But borrowers are still flooding online forums and social media pages with their complaints.

On Twitter, desperate sellers have been contacting the @helptobuy account. Many describe their difficulties in getting through on the phones and getting responses to emails, while others have been pleading for help with obtaining documents such as redemption statements.

Labour MP Ruth Cadbury said on Twitter that she had written to the government about this issue, adding: “We are yet again seeing the consequence of an outsourced service not delivering for the public.”

Homes England said it was not able to comment on individual cases. However, it is understood that the case of the borrower trying to remortgage their property in south-west England has now been resolved.

The organisation said in a statement: “We are in constant contact with our supplier and seeing progress in response times, with extra staff and extended working hours taking effect.

“We fully appreciate that managing mortgage activity can be a stressful time, and individual circumstances can be unique and complex. We’d like to reiterate our apology to any customers who have experienced a delay in response, and would like to reassure them that we’re working closely with DLUHC [Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities] to understand how we can best support them now and in the future.”