The government has confirmed it is extending the completion deadline for new homes to help homebuyers whose property purchases have been delayed due to coronavirus.
The Help to Buy Scheme
The Help to Buy scheme was set up to help those with small deposits get onto the property ladder and has helped more than 270,000 homebuyers since its launch. It enables buyers to put down a 5% deposit, with the government providing a 20% equity loan (40% if you’re buying in London) which is interest-free for the first five years. Buyers take out a mortgage for the remaining 75% (60% if buying in the capital). The scheme is only available for new build properties costing up to £600,000. Originally, the scheme required the new homes to have been built by the end of December this year. The extension means that deadline will now move to 28th February 2021 to help where there may have been delays. However, the cut-off date for legal completion remains at 31st March 2021. The Government has also confirmed that they will work with those who reserved a property before 30th June 2020 but have suffered severe delays due to coronavirus. If necessary they can look to provide an extension for legal completion of 31st May 2021.
