Shared Ownership

Buying through shared ownership.
You can purchase a shared ownership home through a housing association.
​You buy a share of your home (between 25% and 75%) and pay rent on the rest.
​
Discover how it works!

What is Shared Ownership?
​

• ​​Shared Ownership gives first time buyers and those that do not currently own a home the opportunity to purchase a share in a new build or resales property.

• The purchaser pays a mortgage on the share they own, and pays rent to a housing association on the remaining share. Because the purchaser only needs a mortgage for the share they are purchasing, the amount of money required for a deposit is a lot lower when compared to the amount that would be required when purchasing outright.

• The purchaser has the option to increase his share during their time in the property via a process known as ‘staircasing’ and in most cases can staircase all the way to 100%, thereby owning the property outright. shared ownership properties are always leasehold.

Why choose specialist Solicitors?

​When it comes to shared ownership conveyancing, sales and purchases are simply more complex than buying or selling a traditional residential property.
Shared ownership schemes themselves are usually quite complicated, and can have confusing terms and conditions. Also, there are a limited number of mortgage lenders who are happy to fund shared ownership purchases.
You need to have a conveyancing Solicitor to protect your interests, to clearly explain what you’re buying and to understand how to make sure your shared ownership purchase goes ahead smoothly – which often means sticking to tight Housing Association deadlines.
It’s therefore very important that you deal with a Solicitor who has plenty of  knowledge and experience of shared ownership when you are thinking about buying a property on this basis.
Our property team have the experience you need when it comes to shared ownership. Our Solicitors are recommended solicitors for a wide range of housing associations.
​But beware – some law firms might quote based on the costs for a standard leasehold purchase. That’s probably because they don’t understand what’s involved. Conveyancing for shared ownership properties is more complicated than a “normal” purchase, and the most sensible thing to do is to work with solicitors who can show both experience and knowledge in this area.
Our experienced property team handle shared ownership conveyancing.

Who is Eligible?

You can buy a home through shared ownership if your household earns £80,000 a year or less (or £90,000 a year or less in London) and any of the following apply:

• you’re a first-time buyer
• you used to own a home, but can’t afford to buy one now
• you’re an existing shared owner