Help to Buy Agent Service.

Descriptions

Financial and insurance services. Administration services. Administrative services of agencies. Administrative housing services. Database services. Marketing services. The Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) is a non-departmental public body sponsored by the Department for Communities and Local Government.The HCA is seeking to appoint Help to Buy Agent/s (HTBA) to a deliver a range of Help To Buy Agent branded services across 9 (nine) geographic service areas in England, including one area covering Greater London, from April 2014.Each geographic service area will be subject of a separate Lot and only one HTBA will be appointed to deliver the service in each geographic service area (Lot) for the contract period.The HCA therefore wish to appoint between a minimum of 1 HTBA (in the event that a single Applicant tenders for, and is awarded, all Lots) and a maximum of nine agents to deliver the services across England.Applicants may bid for one, more, or all Lots subject to separate submissions at PQQ and tender stage (where invited). Each Lot will be assessed separately and Applicants should not cross-refer to information supplied for other Lots.Applicants will be expected to be able to deliver all the services described for the relevant Lot(s). Expressions of interest for delivery of part of the services in any Lot(s) will not be permitted.HTBAs will deliver a range of Help To Buy Agent branded services, advising people on their low cost home ownership options and supporting administration of the HCA's low cost home ownership (LCHO) and equity loan products, to provide a seamless and consistent service to our customers.The scope of HTBA services required varies in each Lot (see the MOI for further details). Depending on the Lot, required HTBA services may include, but are not limited to, the following Core Services:i) Website and Marketing.Operate and maintain a Help to Buy Agent (HTBA) website as a single point of information for customers and providers of HCA-supported LCHO and equity loan products in the Lot area:— Operate Help to Buy Agent website under branding prescribed by HCA, linked to the HCA's national HTBA portal site;— Provide information content on low cost housing options including ‘Help to Buy' branded products and other related products and services prescribed by HCA.— Provide information content on HCA-supported LCHO (new and re-sales) and HCA-funded equity loan product eligibility criteria, providers and application processes;— Provide online enquiry and application processing facilities for HCA-supported products;— Provide searchable database of available properties (new and re-sales);— Provide defined marketing to support product awareness-raising.ii) Customer Guidance and Signposting (not required for Lot 9).Act as a virtual ‘one-stop shop' of advice and guidance to applicants of low cost housing including ‘Help to Buy' branded products and HCA-supported LCHO and equity loan products in the geographic service area:— Maintain comprehensive product information (website and electronic literature);— Maintain comprehensive list of providers, eligible schemes and properties (new and re-sales);— Operate a dedicated customer Helpline 9-5, Mon –Fri;— Offer impartial advice to customers and signpost them to relevant products, HCA partner services or further sources of information as relevant.iii) Applicant Assessment - Low Cost Home Ownership Products (not required for Lot 9).Assess applicant eligibility for HCA-supported LCHO products (new and re-sales) to ensure compliance to criteria agreed with Government:— Perform applicant needs assessments and affordability assessments to HCA criteria;— Provide signposting and generic advice up to reservation stage;— Issue lists of eligible applicants to LCHO providers.iv) Sales Administration - Equity Loan Products.Undertake robust sales administration activities for HCA-funded equity loan product sales:— Perform eligibility assessment of all applicants at reservation of each home;— Issue Authority to Proceed documents and Solicitor Packs subject to eligibility assessment;— Issue Authority to Exchange documents subject to relevant conveyancing solicitor forms;— Issue Authority to Complete documents subject to relevant conveyancing solicitor forms;— Input transaction data to the HCA's Investment Management System (IMS) database at key process stages;— Undertake IMS scheme inputting and claim submission on behalf of small providers;— Collate accurate post-completion paperwork.v) Service Administration.Maintain an effective service for HCA and stakeholders:— Provide regular monitoring returns to HCA;— Respond to ad-hoc HCA information and data requests;— Maintain relationships with HCA providers— Collaborate with HCA and other HTBA/s to ensure a seamless customer service— Issue quarterly electronic updates to HCA providers;— Operate a managed complaints procedure;— Adhere to data protection requirements.Applicants should note that the scope of HTBA services required in London (Lot 9) is different to that for Lots 1-8 and does not include Core Service ii) or iii). The services in this Lot are being procured by the HCA as contracting and managing authority, under delegation from the Greater London Authority. Please refer to MOI for further details.It is possible that central government departments may wish to benefit from HTBA services in the future however no guarantee is given as to whether this will apply or the value of any services to be provided to such organisations.