Shared ownership explained

Published: 15 December 2017

Your shared ownership questions answered

So, what exactly is shared ownership?

Put simply, it’s a way to help more people become homeowners. With SO Resi, you buy a share of your home – usually between 25% and 75% – with a lower deposit, smaller mortgage and monthly payment on the rest.

Your mortgage and deposit are just on the share of the home you buy, so they are lower than if you bought the traditional way. You also make a monthly payment for the share you don’t own, and pay a service charge which goes towards the cost of looking after your building or development.

Then you can buy extra shares over time and even own 100% of your home in future.

Why shared ownership?

Shared ownership with SO Resi is a faster way to get on the housing ladder. Instead of having to save up a deposit for the whole home, the deposit is just on the share you buy – usually between 25% and 75%. As with any home purchase, there are a few other upfront costs too. There’s more about these further on too.

Shared ownership with SO Resi puts you in control. We’ll let you know the biggest share you can buy based on a financial assessment, but if you’d like to own the share that’s being advertised that's fine too.

Shared ownership with SO Resi is flexible. You can buy a bigger share of your home in future when it’s right for you, and even end up owning 100%. If you don't want to buy any more shares, that’s okay too. You can also sell if you want to move on.

Shared ownership is widely available. There are plenty of shared ownership mortgages around to help you buy your own home.

Who is shared ownership good for?

It’s good for lots of people. It could suit you if you are employed or have another source of income and your household income is below £90,000 in London, or £80,000 everywhere else. For some homes you have to live or work in the same local authority as the property. Each SO Resi listing explains if this applies.

How much do I need to save?

Wondering how much deposit you’ll need for shared ownership? With SO Resi, deposits start at just 5% of the share you buy, so it’s much easier to save enough to get onto the property ladder.

Here’s how that works in practice…

Let’s say you’ve set your sights on home valued at £300,000, and you want a buy a 25% share. Your share would be worth £75,000 and our share £225,000.

A 5% deposit on your share would be £3,750. Your mortgage would be on the remaining £71,250.

So, with a deposit of just £3,750 you could be settling in to your new home.

As when you buy any home, there are a few upfront costs on top of your deposit. It’s a safe bet to save around £3,000 for these.

We think shared ownership with SO Resi helps make the housing market a little fairer, making it easier for you get your foot on the property ladder even if you don’t have a huge deposit or salary. So more people can start enjoying the benefits of home ownership.

Interested?

View SO Resi shared ownership homes here

 

 

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