£1,050 fee hike for families sold Help to Buy mortgages

THOUSANDS of homeowners who have bought properties using the Help to Buy scheme will see their loan repayments skyrocket from next month.

Under Help to Buy, borrowers are given a loan of up to 20 pc of the value of a newly built home or 40 pc in London by the Government.

The buyer is then able to get a mortgage with just a 5 pc deposit.

The loans are interest-free for five years. After this interest is charged at a rate of 1.75 pc of the loan — in addition to their mortgage repayments.

The first swathe of buyers — thought to be around 2,000 borrowers — who took out Help to Buy loans five years ago will be hit with the extra charges from April.

It means that someone with a £300,000 property who took the 20 pc loan would have to pay an extra £1,050 in the first year.

These charges will increase each year in line with the Retail Prices Index, plus 1 pc.

Think tank the Resolution Foundation warns that the fees are ‘a ticking timebomb’ for families who signed up to these loans.