
When do I need a Help To Buy Valuation?
If you purchased your property using the government’s Help To Buy scheme then, when you come to sell, remortgage or want to repay your Help To Buy loan, you will need to obtain a valuation report in the correct format from a RICS Registered Valuer and Chartered Surveyor.
We are complaint with Homes England requirements. Not all surveyors can undertake these valuations, so it is important to select the right surveyor.
We have carried out valuations on most modern residential housing developments within Norfolk & Suffolk meaning we have extensive local market knowledge and experience which is essential in providing accurate valuations.
Once you have instructed us to undertake a Help To Buy valuation, we will need to come and physically inspect the property both internally and externally. The inspection usually takes up to 1 hour. Once we have completed our inspection we will undertake extensive research and aim to deliver your valuation report within 2 working days. This can be sent to Homes England.





FAQs
What is redeeming my Help to Buy loan?
Redeeming your loan means that you will be paying it off, either by selling your property and paying it back from the proceeds of that sale, or buying the percentage of the property you do not currently own. In this situation, a Help To Buy valuation is required so that the amount you have to repay can be calculated.
What do I need to do if I have a Help to Buy loan and want to sell my property?
When a property bought with a Help to Buy loan is put on the market you will need to provide the Help To Buy provider with an independent RICS valuation report before the sale can exchange contracts.
Can I use a mortgage valuation to give to my Help to Buy provider?
Unfortunately, you cannot use your mortgage valuation. Your Help to Buy loan provider will require you to arrange a completely independent RICS valuation report that is produced to a different specification than a standard Mortgage Valuation or Home Survey Report.
How long is a Help To Buy valuation valid for?
A Help To Buy valuation is valid for 3 months. This being the case, you should try to time the valuation so that the valuation date is no more than 3 months before the point that you expect to complete on your sale or complete your remortgage. In the event that the valuation expires this can be extended on a desktop basis for an additional fee.
What happens if my Help To Buy valuation expires?
If this happens then you can obtain a desktop valuation, but this must be completed and sent to Homes England within 2 weeks of the first valuation expiring. A desktop valuation is an update of the original valuation and will confirm whether or not the valuation has changed. If the valuation has changed then new evidence will be provided. The desktop valuation will be valid for a further 3 months.
We needed a RICS survey completed for our Help to Buy loan. Andrew was brilliant at responding quickly, getting us booked in and writing the report within the same day that he came out to the house! Professional and excellent customer service - would definitely use him again!
Friendly, fast service and nice people. Thank you for everything.
Survey was very thorough and the report produced very quickly.
We were very pleased with the survey. Andrew made a very thorough report which was easy to navigate. This helped us with any enquiries we had about the property we were purchasing.
Extremely efficient company to deal with. The Survey report and potential issues are so detailed.
Thank you for your service, which enabled us to see problems that otherwise would have gone undetected.
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Andrew has been very professional, proactive and overall a pleasure from the start. Andrew was always quick to respond to any queries. Very competitive rates in comparison to other business.
With the Easter bank holiday in mind Andrew completed the survey on Wednesday and I had the report by Thursday!
I would be happy to recommend Lockwood Chartered Surveyors to anyone.
Excellent service!