Shared Ownership

You buy a share in a brand new home (usually 50%) using a mortgage. It may be possible to purchase a share between 25% and 75% initially, which will also depend on what you can afford. You will also pay a subsidised monthly rent to us on the share of the property you do not own. If you wish, you can buy additional shares in your home at any time until you own 100% (certain small rural schemes may differ but this will be made clear in our sales details).

Areas that will soon or currently have brand new homes available for Shared Ownership are indicated on the buttons shown opposite with an outline house icon ().

Open our Shared Ownership information booklet (350KB pdf)

Resales

It is also possible for you to buy second-hand shared ownership property. When someone living in a shared ownership property chooses to sell, they must give Soha the opportunity to nominate a purchaser, so we have the chance to sell the home to someone who is eligible for affordable home ownership. If we are unable to nominate a purchaser during the period set out in the lease (usually 6 or 8 weeks), the property can be sold on the open market.

For more information on resales and to view details of resale homes currently available please click on the “Resales” button opposite; or any button with a solid house icon ().

Are you eligible?

The scheme is aimed at First Time Home Buyers, including existing Council or Housing Association Tenants and Keyworkers (teachers, nurses and police officers for example) and you will usually need to register your interest with the local Homebuy agent for the area.  Previous and current homeowners can also be considered in certain circumstances, for example a partnership finishing, owners with a growing family needing a larger property or if you are moving from a lower priced area of the country.

Some developments may also require that you have a local connection, through family or business with the area, but we will let you know if that is the case.

As a general guide, consider that you will need to be earning more that £20,000 a year to afford to buy through the scheme, although this can vary depending on the level of savings you have as well as the area and type of property you wish to buy.

Providing you can obtain a mortgage or have sufficient money to purchase your share of the property you should be eligible for the scheme.

Click here to view Soha's shared ownership Housing Eligibility & Allocation Policy 213KB

Initial costs and payments

You need to ensure that you can afford the initial costs associated with buying a property. We estimate you will need a minimum of £2,500 to pay these costs which include

• Survey and/or valuation of property
• Gas and electric tests
• Solicitors fees
• Local authority searches
• Land registry fee
• Bank transfer and other charges
• Notice of charge and transfer
• Stamp duty
• Reservation fee (where applicable)

What happens when I want to apply for a property?

We will ask you to complete a budget planner giving us details of your current financial circumstances, including savings, rental and loan payments and credit history. We will also ask you to provide a Mortgage Agreement in Principle from your lender, based on the percentage share of the property you are buying and meet you to ensure that you understand the scheme and answer any questions you have.

All of this allows us to ensure that when we say you can reserve a property with us, you are able to buy your home as quickly and smoothly as possible.

What do I need to do now?

If, after reading the Eligibility Policy, you wish to register for Shared Ownership, please click on an area of interest to find out about our developments there and then download, complete and return a Shared Ownership and Rental Application Form. ( 75KB)