We are experts in shared equity and shared ownership schemes.
Shared Ownership is a low cost way to achieve home ownership for low-income homebuyers and key workers. You buy part of your home and rent the remaining share from a housing association. Your initial share might be for as little as 25% and is funded by a mortgage. You pay rent on the share you do not purchase. The bigger the share you purchase, the less rent you have to pay. When you can afford to do so you can buy more shares. This is commonly referred to as staircasing. It is possible to purchase up to 100% in some schemes and own your home outright.
Shared equity is different to shared ownership. With a shared equity scheme you own all of the property, though you have a loan on a part of your deposit. Shared equity schemes are offered by house builders, local authorities and central government through schemes such as Help to Buy.
The government’s Help to Buy scheme is one of the most popular shared equity programmes currently around. It is available to first-time buyers as well as those moving home, and can also be used to purchase some new build properties.
There are some disadvantages to shared equity schemes. For instance, if the value of your property rises, then your equity loan will rise with it. It can also be difficult to re-mortgage. However, on the plus side shared equity schemes can be a good way to get on the property ladder at an earlier stage. Furthermore, many schemes only require you to repay the loan when you sell, so you don’t have to worry about monthly repayments.