Braid Park

Who is eligible?

1.1 This offer is only available to eligible first time purchasers (“you/purchasers”) on selected new build plots and developments in England only (excluding London). This new scheme operates from 1 April 2021 to 31 March 2023. The amount you can borrow is dependent on the region the home you wish to buy is in.

1.2 Help to Buy is only available on repayment mortgages and on properties which are occupied by the individual or individuals taking out the mortgage.

1.3 To access the equity loan, all purchasers must satisfy the “Eligible Purchaser” criteria set out by Homes England and you must be approved by the Help to Buy Agent. Further information on the “Eligible Purchaser” criteria is available from: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/help-to-buy-equity-loan-buyers-guide.

How does it work?

1.4 Purchasers will be required to raise funding (which includes a mortgage and a deposit) of not less than 80% of the property purchase price (excluding any mortgage fees). The property will be subject to a first charge in favour of the mortgage company. Your deposit must be a minimum of 5% of the full property purchase price. The mortgage lender's criteria may affect any deposit percentage and whether it applies before or after the equity loan is deducted from the purchase price.

1.5 Homes England will provide an equity loan to eligible first time purchasers of not less than 10% and not more than 20% of the full purchase price subject to the terms of the equity loan agreement.

1.6 The equity loan provided by Homes England will be secured by way of a second charge on the property behind the first charge referred to in paragraph 1.4.

Paying back the equity loan

1.7 Purchasers must agree to repay the loan in full, plus any interest accrued and management fees.

1.8 For the first 5 years, the equity loan provided by Homes England is interest free. There is a payment of a £1 monthly management fee to pay by Direct Debit.

1.9 From year 6, interest will be payable by you at an annual gross rate of 1.75% of the amount you borrowed. The figure will rise each year in April by the Consumer Prices Index plus 2%. You will also continue to pay the monthly management fee of £1 for the life of the loan. The above fees do not count towards paying back the equity loan.

1.10 You must repay the equity loan to Homes England when you: (i) sell the property; or (ii) pay off the repayment mortgage on the property; or (iii) reach the end of the equity loan term which is 25 years from legal completion of the property.

1.11 You can repay the equity loan to Homes England at any time following legal completion. Repayment whether in full or in part will be based on the market value of the property at the time of the repayment(s) and you will have to arrange and pay for the valuation of the property at that time. The minimum instalment value is 10% of the total of the equity loan.

1.12 If you are selling your property, the equity loan will be repayable on either (i) the market value of your property; or (ii) the price your property sells for, whichever is the highest. This means that if the market value of your property increases, so does the amount you repay on your equity loan. If the value of your property decreases, the amount you owe on your equity loan will also decrease. This may result in Homes England being paid more or less than the original loan value.

1.13 If, on the sale of the property, the price of the property has fallen and there is insufficient money from the sale to repay the equity loan after the mortgage has been paid you will lose any deposit you paid towards your property. Homes England will not however seek to recover the balance of their equity loan from you.

1.14 Detailed terms and conditions apply to the equity loan which will be made available to the purchaser via their legal advisors as part of the conveyancing process.

An example of how Help to Buy works in the West Midlands region is as follows:

Maximum house value: £255,600

The equity loan provided by Homes England will not incur any loan fees for the first 5 years. From year 6, loan fees will be payable by the purchaser at an annual gross rate of 1.75% of the amount you borrowed. The figure will rise each year in April by the Consumer Prices Index plus 2%.

1. This offer is available on selected developments and plots only, subject to status and availability.
2. This offer cannot be used in conjunction with any other Barratt Homes offer.
3. This offer is not available on Buy to Let property purchases.
4. This offer is for Barratt Homes to contribute towards your deposit up to a maximum of £12,000 (Lowman) or £10,000 (Twyford).
5. This sum will be agreed prior to the reservation of your property.
6. Purchasers are required to contribute a minimum 10% deposit.
7. Barratt Homes’ contribution is paid to the purchaser’s solicitor at the time of completion.
8. Purchasers must meet the lender’s mortgage eligibility criteria.
9. Legal completion must take place on or before the date agreed at the time of reservation.
10. Barratt Homes reserve the right to withdraw or alter the terms of this offer at any time prior to payment of a reservation fee.

1. Part Exchange is only available on selected plots and developments in England or Wales and is subject to our standard terms and conditions. Part Exchange will only be available where the existing property being traded in is no more than 70% of the selling price of the plot you are considering purchasing, up to a maximum value of £300,000.

2. All properties shall need to be considered for Part Exchange to establish their method of construction or unusual characteristics. Barratt Homes are under no obligation to make an offer.

3. Any offer made to purchase your existing property will be at fair value and will be based on a presumed sale of within 8 to 10 weeks. Our offer will be subject to a RICS survey and an independent valuation.

4. To be considered for Part Exchange you will need to have completed the Part Exchange application form in full, a Reservation Agreement and have paid your Reservation Deposit.

5. You will need to provide access to our appointed estate agents, Part Exchange Manager or our representative within 3 working days for the purposes of valuations and inspection of your existing property.

6. Following valuation and inspection of your existing property we will make you a verbal offer. Your acceptance will be required within 2 working days and any written offer must be returned within 2 working days of receipt. Upon acceptance your Reservation Agreement will be processed. If you do not accept our offer, your application for Part Exchange and your reservation on the new property will be cancelled.

7. Note any offer made to you by us under the Part Exchange scheme is subject to any necessary further enquires or reports.

8. You will need to ensure your solicitor is instructed to proceed on your behalf upon acceptance of our offer and to meet our 28 day exchange requirement.

9. You agree to cancel any existing arrangements with any agents and any agents’ fees or commissions and VAT that may have been incurred by you prior to our agreement will remain your responsibility. Barratt Homes will not accept liability towards any such costs or charges.

10. Both your purchase of the new home and our Part Exchange agreement are subject to contract until the exchange has taken place on both transactions.

11. We will market your exiting property prior to your move into a new Barratt home. You agree to allow reasonable access to your existing property to facilitate the resale (subject to agreed appointments) and to the erection of a “for sale” sign.

12. Any estate agents appointed by ourselves to market your existing property will be acting on our behalf and should the complete transaction proceed to mutual legal completion any fees and commissions for the appointed agents will be met by Barratt Homes. Should either party withdraw from the transaction but you continue to sell your existing property to any individual introduced by our appointed agents during the period of our instructions, and any such sale proceed to a legal completion, you would be responsible for the agents’ commission and VAT.

13. Certain items are deemed fixtures and fittings within your existing property and must remain within the property and are included in our offer. Such items will be set out within the Property Inspection Form.

Our estate agent or Part Exchange Manager will discuss these with you and they must be identified on the Property Inspection Form, which in turn will form part of our legal agreement. If there are specific items you wish to remove these must be identified with our estate agent or Part Exchange Manager and duly documented. This may necessitate your replacing any items removed or carrying out reinstatement of walls, ceilings or floors to an acceptable standard, including the filling of any holes and repainting. Items in the garden including plants, shed and water features are also deemed fixtures and fittings and must remain unless otherwise agreed in writing.

14. A Corgi or Gas safe service certificate will be required on all gas equipment and an electrical testing certificate will be required on all electric equipment within your existing property prior to exchange of contracts to certify they are safe and in a full working condition. You will also be required to provide an Energy Performance Certificate.

15. Any prepaid service meters must be replaced with standard credit meters prior to legal completion.

16. Your existing property must continue to be maintained internally and externally to an acceptable standard until legal completion and on legal completion must be left clean and tidy including the garden, loft and any outbuildings with only the agreed items remaining.

17. On the day of legal completion you will not receive the keys to your new home until completion has taken place on your existing property and only then when it is confirmed that you have left the keys as set out in the Property Inspection Form with our appointed estate agent or ourselves, along with any alarm codes. You will be notified prior to legal completion where these keys are to be left. Any keys not provided may necessitate a locksmith being instructed on our behalf to replace locks and supply keys, the cost of which would be recovered from you.

18. You will be responsible for all service company invoices up to and including the day of legal completion. Please ensure you have had all your meters read in order that the final bills can be forwarded on to you for settlement. We will not accept any bills or invoices for periods of consumption prior to completion date.

19. Full vacant possession of your existing home will be required upon legal completion.