Help to Buy ISA
The Help to Buy (HTB) ISA scheme is closed to new savers, but if you have an existing account, you can still get a Government bonus towards your first home. This guide explains the rules for claiming your bonus and how to use savings correctly as part of your home purchase.
How your Help to Buy ISA works
- You can pay in a maximum of £200 per month, though you could have opened your ISA with a one-off £1,200 deposit.
- The Government will give you a 25% bonus on the amount you have saved.
- The minimum bonus you can get is £400 (on savings of £1,600), and the maximum bonus is £3,000 (on savings of £12,000).
- The bonus can only be used if you are buying a home. You can withdraw your savings for another purpose, but you will not get the bonus.
- The ISA can be used to buy a property worth up to £250,000 outside of London, or up to £450,000 in London.
- You must have opened your account by 30th November 2019, and you must claim your bonus by 1st December 2030.
- Help to Buy RICS Valuations.
- Remortgaging or selling advice.
- Fixed-fee, no-obligation quotes.
- On 99% of mortgage lender panels.
- Rated 'Excellent' on Trustpilot.
- Solving all your property challenges.
How to claim your Help to Buy ISA bonus
The process of claiming your bonus is handled by your conveyancing solicitor. The most important rule to remember is that the bonus cannot be used for your exchange deposit. It is only paid at completion.
To claim your bonus, you must:
- Get a solicitor to handle your conveyancing.
- Once your solicitor is instructed, you will be asked to close your HTB ISA.
- Provide your solicitor with a closing letter from your bank or building society.
- Your solicitor will then apply to the Government for the bonus.
- The bonus money will be sent to your solicitor, and they will apply it to the final purchase price of your home on the day of completion.
Do you earn interest on your Help to Buy ISA?
You earn interest on the money you save in your HTB ISA, just like a standard cash ISA. The interest rate is set by your provider.
However, you will not earn interest on the Government bonus because the bonus is not paid into your account until the completion of your property purchase.
Your final bonus is calculated on both the money you have saved and the interest you have earned.
Help to Buy ISA vs Lifetime ISA
While the HTB ISA is no longer available to new savers, it is often compared to the Lifetime ISA. Understanding the differences is important, especially if you had the choice to open one or the other. Here’s a quick comparison:
Feature | Help to Buy ISA | Lifetime ISA |
|---|---|---|
Feature Status | Help to Buy ISA CLOSED to new savers. | Lifetime ISA OPEN to new savers (under 40). |
Feature Annual Contribution | Help to Buy ISA £2,400 (max). | Lifetime ISA £4,000 (max). |
Feature Bonus Limit | Help to Buy ISA £3,000 (lifetime). | Lifetime ISA £1,000 per year (no lifetime limit). |
Feature Bonus Use | Help to Buy ISA Can only be used at completion. | Lifetime ISA Can be used for the exchange deposit. |
Feature Property Value | Help to Buy ISA Up to £250k / £450k (London). | Lifetime ISA Up to £450k (anywhere in the UK). |
Feature Penalty | Help to Buy ISA Lose the bonus on withdrawal. | Lifetime ISA 25% penalty on the whole amount. |
- Every stage is explained in your language. No nonsense.
- We hold your hand from start to finish.
- Fixed Fee Conveyancing quotes.
- No Sale No Fee protections (except Auction and Right to Buy).
- Fast completions for new builds.
Andrew started his career in 2000 working within conveyancing solicitor firms and grew hands-on knowledge of a wide variety of conveyancing challenges and solutions. After helping in excess of 50,000 clients in his career, he uses all this experience within his article writing for SAM, mainstream media and his self published book How to Buy a House Without Killing Anyone.
Caragh is an excellent writer and copy editor of books, news articles and editorials. She has written extensively for SAM for a variety of conveyancing, survey, property law and mortgage-related articles.
