Shared Ownership

Shared Ownership is only available on properties that have been built for that scheme by a housing association using Government subsidy. Therefore, the option does not exist to make an offer on an outright sale property on a Shared Ownership basis.

No. Shared Ownership does not mean you share the ownership of the property, or have to live with another person. It means you own a share of the property and pay rent on the share you don’t own to a housing association. Buying a house with friends, a spouse or a partner is known as joint ownership.

There is no longer a restriction on the number of bedrooms within the property you wish to buy. Previously Shared Ownership purchasers were eligible to apply for properties with up to one extra bedroom than the household size required. Now, as long as you can afford it, you can apply for properties with as many bedrooms as you wish.

Resale properties are homes that a current owner bought through shared ownership and now wishes to sell on. You will typically purchase the existing shared owner’s share of the home.

The share you purchase is determined by the affordability  assessment carried out and taking into consideration the property price, your income and any monthly outgoings. Generally, our new developments are advertised from 50%, however, some of our shared ownership properties can be purchased from 25% but this can vary by development. Please ask us for further details.

With ‘resale’ properties, the minimum share will be the same share that was purchased previously. So, if the seller had a 70% share in their Shared Ownership property, the minimum share you can purchase will be 70%.

The rent you pay on a Shared Ownership home is often referred to as 'subsidised' or 'discounted' because it's typically lower than the market rent you would pay in the local area. 

As a rule of thumb, Shared Ownership rent is set at 2.75% or 3% of the unsold equity i.e. the portion of the property you do not own. However, the exact rent for each home will be shown on the property listings or price lists.

Your rent will usually be reviewed every year. Any increases would be based on – and proportionate to – rises in either the Retail Prices Index (RPI) or the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) plus an additional amount, usually between 0.5% and 1%. You can find the rent review provisions within your  lease.

You can get help from another scheme called ‘Older People’s Shared Ownership’ if you’re aged 55 or over. It works in the same way as the general Shared Ownership scheme, but you can only buy up to 75% of your home. Once you own 75% you won’t have to pay rent on the remaining share. You can search for these particular homes on Share to Buy by filtering your property search to show ‘Over 55’s Shared Ownership’.

The process of purchasing a new-build property depends on a number of factors, such as the length of time required to arrange mortgage financing and the speed at which the solicitors involved can process the sale. Usually it takes around two months from start to finish, however it can take as little as 28 days if everything proceeds quickly. Although, if building work has yet to be completed on the development this may lengthen the process.

The Shared Ownership lease sets out the rights and obligations of both the landlord (i.e.the housing association) and tenant (i.e. the shared owner). The housing association has a contractual right to ensure that the shared owner complies with the terms of the lease. A Shared Ownership lease is where the leaseholder has purchased a share in the equity and pays rent on that share retained by the landlord.

Some of the key elements of a Shared Ownership lease contain the following:

• Your rights as a leaseholder
• Rules and regulations contained in your lease
• The conditions of your lease

Typically a Shared Ownership leaseholder will own 25%, 50% or 75% of the property and pay rent on that part of the property owned by the landlord. The actual proportion owned by the leaseholder and the landlord can vary from the examples above.

When a lease term falls below 80 years it is generally considered as ‘short’. Short leases can make it difficult for the leaseholder to sell their home or re-mortgage; as mortgage providers consider it an increased risk against lending on a short lease.

For shared ownership leaseholders, there is no statutory right to a lease extension. However, we offer shared ownership lease extensions through what is referred to as an ‘informal’ route and we will consider any request for a lease extension on an individual basis. This decision falls solely on Rooftop considering eligibility criteria and special circumstances for the extension.

To begin the lease extension process you will first need to request a Lease extension request form. You can do this by emailing sales@rooftopgroup.org.

The process of extending your lease normally takes from 3 to 6 months. The cost of a lease extension is determined by a valuer and there will be other costs including but not limited to the premium, solicitors fees, valuation costs, and admin fees.

Please contact us to find out more.

A service charge is a payment made by the homeowner to the housing association towards the costs of providing and maintaining services for the development you live on. It is applicable on both houses and flats.  You must pay your share of these costs as it is a legal duty set out in your lease. The service charge will vary depending on where you live and covers things like:

• Buildings insurance
• Paths and access
• Grounds maintenance
• Communal landscaping
• Management fee

The service charge can increase or decrease, and would normally happen at various intervals (usually annually) which will be outlined in the terms of your lease. The amount collected at a development from all residents will be compared with how much has been spent on items such as communal cleaning, gardening and general maintenance and adjusted accordingly. At the end of the financial year, we will clearly explain if there needs to be any changes to your service charge for the year ahead.

Your lease should say how service charges are calculated and how charges are divided between leaseholders.

You can sell your property at any time but you need to tell us. Unless you own the property outright, in line with your lease obligations we usually have the right to nominate a purchaser for a set period of time. If we are unable to find a buyer, you’re free to sell your home on the open market. Some leases require you to offer the property back to us before you sell on the open market. Please check your lease.

The purchase price payable by the new purchaser is based on the open market value of the property. Unless you staircase to 100%, you will only be able to sell the share of the property you currently own. When you sell your shared ownership lease, the new purchaser is agreeing to take on the terms and conditions within the lease.

To commence the 'resales' process we need to obtain an open market valuation of the property and it is a condition of the lease that you pay for this valuation.

Rooftop will advertise the property for sale, and you can advertise with a local estate agent. Once a buyer has been found we will carry out a financial assessment to verify eligibility and affordability to purchase. Any purchaser will be required to acquire the property subject to the covenants contained in your lease.

You will be responsible for any estate agents’ fees and your own legal costs. You will be required to pay an administrative cost for dealing with the sale. This fee is currently £150.00 plus VAT. You will also be required to pay reasonable legal costs for dealing with the assignment of the lease to the new leaseholder. All fees will be payable on completion via your solicitor and these fees are subject to change.

When you sell your home, you’ll benefit from any increase in the value of the property. But you should be aware that, like any other homeowner, you may also be affected by a fall in value.

After your initial purchase you can usually buy further shares in your home. This is known as ‘staircasing’. In some cases, such as in rural areas, you will only be entitled to staircase up to 80% of the value of the property. The process will be carried out in accordance with your lease which you will need to refer to. You are allowed to staircase in tranches, and you will need to refer to your lease for the minimum amount required.

The price you pay for additional shares is based on the full open market value of the property and this may go up and down depending on housing market conditions. The value of your home will be set by an independent RICS surveyor.

As you increase your share of the ownership in the property, your rental payments will decrease. We will revise your rent to reflect the increased share purchased in your property from the time of staircasing completion. If you are staircasing to 100%, known as 'final staircasing', there are terms in your lease that cover these arrangements.

There will be costs involved including solicitors’ fees and valuation fees and an application form will need to be submitted. Please contact our dedicated Sales Team for more information.

Most pets are welcome in our shared ownership houses, but we have stricter guidance on pets in apartments, as  it is essential to respect the rules and guidelines of the community and be mindful of other residents.

Please speak to your Sales Consultant for more information.

When a new shared ownership property is sold for the first time, it’s usually on a 125 year lease. However, you must check your lease.

If you’re buying a resale property (i.e. from someone who already owns it), you’ll inherit the remaining years left on the lease. For example, if you have a 125 lease property and the current owner has held the lease for 10 years, you’ll have a 115 year lease. If the lease term is less than 80 years, you might want to consider extending the lease. Please speak to your solicitor to find out what this means for you.

All shared ownership homes are sold on a leasehold basis, whether it is a house, bungalow or apartment.  This means that the buyer is given the right to live in the property for a set number of years, but the land itself belongs to the freeholder, which will be the housing developer or housing association.

The lease is a contract between the freeholder (housing developer or housing association) and the leaseholder (the purchaser).

If you have purchased a house with a standard lease, usually the freehold will be transferred to you and the shared ownership lease will end  once you buy 100% of the sharesYour lease will confirm these arrangements so please read your lease carefully.

If the property value is lower than the Stamp Duty threshold of £250,000, then you will not need to pay any Stamp Duty when purchasing your home.

You would usually only need to pay SDLT on the share you are buying and not for the full property value.  However, as rules and limits on SDLT thresholds are subject to change you should check what the current rules are before going ahead. Please speak to your solicitor to find out more and for an exact calculation on the property you are purchasing.

A service charge is used to cover the repairs and maintenance to communal areas. It does not include any maintenance or repair of your home, decoration, improvements, or gardening.

A sinking fund covers the cost of major repairs that may be needed in the future and provides a way to spread the cost of expensive work that may be needed on your building. Depending on your lease and property it could be used to pay towards external roofs, windows, drains and plumbing systems, parking areas, footpaths, redecorating shared areas and so on. A sinking fund is necessary to ensure that the costs of major renewals and replacements are paid equally by all residents.

If you must contribute to a sinking fund, you usually pay this as part of your service charge and you only have to pay into a sinking fund if your lease says you have to.

You may decide to re-mortgage to obtain a better interest rate or when your current deals comes to an end.

You should advise us that you are intending to re-mortgage, and Rooftop must approve the new mortgage to ensure it meets our requirements.

As with every mortgage there will be associated costs.

If you own a shared ownership property we will need to agree to any changes to the person/people named on the shared ownership lease.

If we agree to the change you will also need to instruct a solicitor to register the changes at the land registry.

If you have a mortgage on the property and the person/ people named on the mortgage is/are changing we will also need to agree to these changes.

The cost of some services that we must provide under your lease are not paid for through the regular service charge.  Please speak to us to find out more.

This typically includes work which we are obliged to carry out including resale fees, valuations, assessments, alteration & improvement requests, lease extensions, and any other costs involved in handling all elements of an enquiry or sale.

Reservation fee – This is a £250 fee you will pay to reserve your home. It is non-refundable but when the sales “completes” it will be deducted from the monies due on completion.

Solicitors Fees – A solicitor will be required to carry out the necessary legal work and the fees will vary depending on the solicitor you use. They typically include search fees, land registry fees and other expenses also known as disbursements.

Mortgage Fees – There may be a fee required as part of your mortgage application and valuation. Please refer to your financial advisor or lender for a full breakdown of fees applicable to you.

Mortgage deposit – Your mortgage lender will usually require a deposit. The cost will vary between lender but typically begins at 5% of the share you are purchasing.

Stamp Duty – This is a government tax on buying a home. You should seek the advice of your solicitor who will tell you if the tax applies and how it can be paid.

Other moving costs – Other costs may be incurred throughout the process such as removal costs which can vary. We recommend that you have between £3000 and £5000 available to cover all the fees and costs of moving, including the solicitor and brokers fees.