Agony Agent

Readers put their property questions to our guest panel of experts: solicitors, mortgage advisers, property gurus and Help to Buy providers

THIS MONTH’S PANEL OF EXPERTS

Wayne MooreRead, Senior Partner, Direction Law

Rich Login, Director of Sales and Marketing, Optivo

Simon Scott Assistant Director Assistant Director of Commercial & of Commercial & Property Marketing, Property Marketing, Origin Housing Origin Housing

TEST THE PANEL

We need your questions...

If you have any queries, or diffi culties in understanding the property buying process, our panel of experts is waiting to help. Send our team your questions on buying property, Help to Buy, legal issues, or your fi nancial problems and we’ll fi nd the best person from the panel to give the advice you need.

Email your questions to: lynda@ rsttimebuyermag.co.uk

Can I use Help to Buy and live by the sea?

Q I have managed to save up

towards a deposit for my first home. Now that I can work remotely, I am looking to move away from London. I hope to move closer to the coast but with the option to use Help to Buy to supplement my deposit. Is there an opportunity where I can buy a new build with Help to Buy nearer the coast, and where is best to invest?

Poppy Sedgwick, Stockwell

AThere are many Help to Buy opportunities across the country, and as we shift to more hybrid working, living nearer the coast or into the country is becoming more appealing. To purchase a property with Help to Buy in London you need a much higher deposit, therefore the Government scheme offers up to 40% equity loan of the property price. In the South East, the equity loan is 20% but property prices are normally lower to begin with.

It’s great to hear you have saved up a deposit. One option would be to look at where the latest new builds are being developed along the coast. Brighton, in the past, has been a go-to for London commuters wanting to be by the sea. And now there is a whole new neighbourhood being built in North Brighton, offering first time buyers the chance to own a home with Help to Buy. Home X in Lewes Road, by Optivo, offers high spec apartments without the traditional Brighton price tag, making homeownership in this area more achievable. You will have fast connections to London, while also being only a 19- minute bus ride to the beach or a short walk to the Wild Park Nature Reserve, part of the South Downs. The town, in recent years, has seen a growth in the digital sectors so you would be among like-minded creatives and techies too.

The selection of studio, one, two and three bedroom apartments, available with Help to Buy, start from £231,000. Home X’s high quality residential homes include cuttingedge technology, landscaped outdoor spaces and inspiring flexible workspaces, perfect for those who want to divide their home and work environments. Residents at Home X also benefit from a concierge service in the ultra-cool communal space, a wellness area for time out and bike and car club membership.

Proof of deposit

QI am buying a shared

ownership property and using a solicitor recommended by my housing association. The solicitor has said that I must prove where my deposit money is from. I don’t understand why they need me to provide evidence for this as it’s my money from family overseas and savings – is this normal or should I just change solicitors?

Felicity Greenview, Basingstoke

AWhen you instruct a solicitor to act on your behalf, one of their first jobs, which is required by law, is to verify your identity, and in the case of a purchase, details of your source of funds. This is required by all solicitors as they have to comply with the law regarding money laundering and proceeds of crime, in particular The Proceeds of Crime Act 2002.

The rules are not prescriptive, but all solicitors must take reasonable steps to verify where the money you are purchasing your property with is from. Therefore, you will be asked whether money you are contributing is from your savings, being gifted to you or loaned to you from a third party (separate from your main mortgage lender), and whether any of the monies are from overseas. If so, you will also be asked to supply supporting documentation to prove the source of the money.

In your case, as your deposit comes from more than one place, it is important to provide everything that is relevant for each part. In terms of your savings, your solicitor will need to know how they were accrued, for example regular savings, inheritance, property sale, divorce settlement, etc, and will request evidence to support this.

With regards to the money being gifted to you from family abroad, details will need to be provided and depending on which country the money is coming from there may be some additional requirements, so be prepared to provide translations of bank statements and other documents.

As well as it being a legal requirement, it is important to remember to satisfy your ID, proof of address and source of funds with your solicitor as soon as possible, as they will be unable to proceed to exchange without them.

What can I afford?

QMy company has offered me

an opportunity to relocate to London for work, which I would really like to take. However, after searching for rental properties in the capital, I just don’t think I can justify the move. I saved some money during the pandemic which I hoped could go towards a deposit for buying my own home, but I don’t know how far this will get me in London. I’m worried that I’ll end up living far out and spend my life travelling in for work. Are there any ways I can avoid this?

Debbie Barber, Oxford

ARelocating to the capital is an exciting prospect; however, rising property prices in London mean that many feel priced out of the city. Luckily, for first time buyers looking to make the move, there are alternative options available to you, rather than buying a home outright on the open market.

Many housing associations, such as Origin Housing, offer new build properties available through shared ownership. This Government-backed scheme gives first time buyers the flexibility to buy what they can afford, by initially purchasing a share of a new build home between 25%-75%. With shared ownership, new homebuyers can secure a property with deposits from as low as 5% of the purchased share of the home. Shared owners pay a mortgage on the share they own and pay subsidised rent on the portion they do not own.

We would recommend doing some initial research at the start of your property search, with your criteria in mind. Check out the websites of housing associations like Origin Housing to browse for available homes and find the developments which offer what you are looking for. It helps to pinpoint areas where you think you might like to live first, and check out their transport links and other nearby facilities.

At Origin, we have a number of shared ownership developments available in wellconnected north London neighbourhoods. Located just moments away from Harrowon-the-Hill London Underground Station, our shared ownership homes at Harrow One offer residents swift connections into central London in under 20 minutes. Developments such as Harrow One provide first time buyers affordability in a well-connected location, which means you’ll avoid spending too much of your time commuting.

For you, Debbie, shared ownership would allow you to find an affordable new home, without compromising on location and space.

For more information about our choice of currently available homes, you can browse our website at originhousingsales. co.uk/developments.

Wayne Moore-Read