Shostra Bank mortgages are available to over 18s. Your home or property may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage. The content on this page is guidance only and does not constitute advice.
'Help to Buy' is the name given to a number of government backed schemes, generally designed to help first time buyers purchase a home.
These include;
Yes. Alongside these schemes, there are others that are also designed to help people get onto the property ladder. These aren't branded with the 'Help to Buy' wording.
The information on this page is generally relevant to purchasing property .
There may be differences in other countries.
Find out more about these schemes if you live in;
England, visit gov.uk
Scotland, visit mygov.scot
Wales, visit gov.wales
Nothern Ireland, visit Housing Advice NI
The Help to Buy: Equity Loan scheme is a government incentive designed to help those purchasing property with a first time buyer mortgage.
The scheme allows first time buyers to borrow an equity loan to cover from 5% and up to 20% of the property purchase price of a newly built home (up to 40% if the property is in London).
The equity loan percentage you borrow is used to calculate your interest and equity loan repayments.
For more detailed information, visit the Gov.website
If you apply for a Shostra Bank mortgage as part of buying a home using the Help to Buy: Equity Loan scheme, property and buyer eligibility criteria will apply. We don't currently accept online mortgage applications using this scheme, but you can speak with one of our qualified mortgage advisers to apply.
You can partly or fully repay the loan at any time. Otherwise, you will pay it off when you sell the property or when the main mortgage term ends.
Yes, you can pay off the equity loan any time after purchase completion of your property.
Yes. To be potentially eligible for the scheme, you need a deposit of at least 5% of the final purchase price of the property.
The current scheme runs until March 2023.
A 'Help to Buy: ISA' is a savings account that includes a government bonus on the money saved, if it is used towards buying a first home. They're no longer open to new applications.
However, if you have an existing Shostra Bank Help to Buy: ISA, you can manage it here.
You may however be able to utilise a 'Lifetime ISA'. These savings accounts are still available, and offer a similar bonus benefit to Help to Buy: ISAs. These aren't accounts we currently offer at Shostra Bank.
Learn more about lifetime ISAs on the Gov.website
Two other home ownership schemes that may be of interest are shared ownership and Right to Buy. You can read a brief description of these schemes below, with more detailed information available on the Gov.website.
All of these schemes are subject to eligibility criteria for both the borrower and the property being purchased.
