Keep the equity loan
Review a new deal with your current lender or move to a different lender while retaining the equity loan. Compare the new mortgage payment with the continuing scheme interest, management fee and future equity repayment.
HELP TO BUY REMORTGAGE ADVICE · EXISTING EQUITY LOANS
You can review your mortgage without automatically clearing your Help to Buy equity loan. The right route depends on where your property is, whether you change lender, how much you borrow and whether you repay any of the equity stake.
Free initial consultation. Any charge for further work is agreed for your case before chargeable work starts.
Keep the equity loan, repay part or clear it. Each choice changes the mortgage, scheme and legal steps.
Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage.
These are options for someone who already owns a home with a Help to Buy equity loan. They are not applications for a new English Help to Buy loan: that scheme is closed to new buyers.
Review a new deal with your current lender or move to a different lender while retaining the equity loan. Compare the new mortgage payment with the continuing scheme interest, management fee and future equity repayment.
Reduce the government’s equity percentage while keeping a smaller stake in place. In England, a part repayment must normally be at least 10% of the home’s market value and cannot leave less than 5% outstanding.
Use savings, an affordable larger repayment mortgage or a combination to clear the equity loan. Compare the new mortgage’s full cost with the cost and risk of keeping the equity stake.
The choice is individual. A lower monthly payment today does not by itself mean a lower total cost, and paying off the equity loan does not guarantee a better mortgage deal.
EXISTING ENGLISH HELP TO BUY: EQUITY LOANS
Homes England distinguishes a same-lender change, a new lender, additional borrowing and equity-loan repayment. The exact paperwork and permission depend on what you change.
Stay with the same lender, without borrowing more: Homes England says you do not need to contact it or apply to remortgage. Ask your lender whether a Deed of Postponement is needed. A product transfer may be simpler, but compare the offered deal and any existing mortgage charges.
Change lender, without borrowing more: you must apply to Homes England for permission before the remortgage. Your conveyancer deals with a Deed of Postponement so the new repayment mortgage remains the first charge. An administrator fee applies. Read Homes England’s no-extra-borrowing guide.
You need Homes England’s permission while the equity loan remains. It allows additional borrowing for specified purposes, including repaying part or all of the equity loan, and certain approved structural alterations or ownership changes. It is not a general route to release cash for any purpose. The lender must also assess affordability and the property. Check the additional-borrowing rules.
Start with today’s mortgage balance, the property value and your equity-loan percentage. Then compare written mortgage illustrations over the same period, including all fees and the remaining equity obligation.
Suppose a home originally cost £250,000 and the 20% equity loan advanced £50,000. If the home is now valued at £300,000, repaying the full 20% stake would be £60,000 before scheme interest, administration, valuation, legal and mortgage costs. That is £10,000 more than the cash originally advanced because the stake follows the property value.
If the main mortgage balance is £150,000, a replacement mortgage large enough to clear both balances would be about £210,000 before fees: 70% of the illustrative £300,000 value. This arithmetic is not an available mortgage, a lender valuation or a recommendation. If the property value falls, the equity repayment may also fall, but other borrowing risks remain.
For English loans, interest usually starts after the first five years, but the annual increase differs between the 2013–21 and 2021–23 schemes. Interest and management fees do not repay the equity stake. Check your agreement and GOV.UK’s current explanation; this page does not quote a live mortgage rate.
Find your main mortgage statement, deal-end date, any early repayment charge and your Help to Buy agreement or account details. Note the original equity percentage and whether you have already repaid part of it. If payments are in arrears, speak to the scheme administrator and lender before planning a switch.
Think about your affordable monthly payment and how long you expect to stay. A larger mortgage may replace an equity obligation with more conventional debt, but the interest and fees could make it more expensive. Ask an adviser to compare suitable mortgage choices on the same basis.
If you plan to repay the English equity loan, read Homes England’s RICS surveyor criteria before instructing a valuer. The lender’s valuation is separate. The equity-loan report has limited validity, so coordinate its timing with the mortgage and conveyancer.
Obtain the lender’s offer and, where required, scheme permission or redemption documents. Your conveyancer handles the charge, Deed of Postponement or equity repayment at completion. Do not stop scheme payments until the administrator confirms the process is complete.
For general remortgaging steps, visit our remortgage guide; for the Help to Buy purchase scheme itself, read our Help to Buy mortgage page. Those pages have different purposes from this existing-owner decision guide.
Do not use the Homes England forms or English permission rules for another nation. Read the agreement you signed and contact your own scheme administrator.
Help to Buy – Wales says changing to another qualifying lender needs scheme permission. Its post-completion guide distinguishes that from a same-lender product switch without extra borrowing. Ask the Welsh scheme team, lender and conveyancer what applies to your proposed change and any equity repayment. Welsh Government’s Help to Buy FAQs and existing-customer documents give the current route.
No, a remortgage does not automatically require repayment of the equity loan. You may keep it, repay part or repay it in full, subject to the lender’s criteria and the separate scheme process that applies to your choice.
If you keep the equity loan and move to a different lender without borrowing more, Homes England says you must apply for permission. A same-lender switch without extra borrowing does not normally require an application to Homes England, although you should check with your lender about a Deed of Postponement.
Potentially, if a lender finds the larger mortgage affordable and the scheme process permits it. Homes England restricts additional borrowing while an equity loan remains, so the purpose and amount must be checked before applying.
The equity repayment is based on the percentage being repaid and the home’s current market value, not just the cash originally advanced. You may also have a valuation, scheme administration, conveyancing, mortgage or early repayment charge. Ask for written figures for your case.
No. For an English equity-loan repayment, Homes England requires a valuation that meets its RICS surveyor criteria; it says a mortgage lender’s valuation is not accepted for that purpose. Arrange it at the right time because the report has limited validity.
The English Homes England process does not apply to Welsh or Scottish Help to Buy loans. Check your own agreement and contact the relevant scheme administrator before changing lender or borrowing more; their consent and repayment rules differ.
Tell us which nation your home is in, when your mortgage deal ends, your approximate mortgage balance and whether you want to keep or repay the equity loan. We can review your circumstances, compare mortgage options we can advise on and explain the lender evidence, costs and next steps. The scheme administrator decides its permissions and redemption figure; your conveyancer deals with the legal work.
You can learn about Count Ready and its adviser before getting in touch. We will say if your proposed scheme or lender route is outside what we can arrange. Neither an initial conversation nor an illustrative calculation guarantees a mortgage or scheme permission.
Reviewed 1 October 2026. General information, not a personal mortgage recommendation. Scheme processes, lender criteria and charges can change. Recheck your agreement and the current official guidance before committing.
Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage.
