Shared Owners

Helpful information for our shared owners....from living in your home to what to do when your circumstances change.

Your lease

As a shared owner, your rights and responsibilities are set out in detail within your lease, but as a general guide you are responsible for:

  • Paying any service charge and rents
  • Getting our written permission before carrying out any alterations to your home
  • Maintaining and repairing the inside of your home, including fixtures and fittings
  • Allowing our contractors access to your home to carry out any necessary repairs (we must give you enough notice in writing) or immediately in an emergency.

Buying more shares in your home

STAIRCASING INFORMATION

With most shared ownership homes you can buy more shares in your property until you own 100%. This is known as staircasing. It increases your ownership/equity in the property and reduces your rent payments to us for the share you do not own.

The aspiration is for our shared owners to eventually own their home outright, where affordable and where the lease allows.

Please be aware some of our leases may restrict staircasing to 80%. This is normally in rural areas where the local authority wish to keep affordable homes in that area. Your solicitor should have made you aware of this at the time you purchased your home.

How to staircase:

We offer two options for buying more shares in your home.

Traditional staircasing allows you to buy from as little as 5% more shares in your home. The minimum amount you can staircase by will be set out in your lease.

Gradual staircasing applies to the new model shared ownership lease and lets shared owners buy an additional 1% share in their property each year, for the first 15 years of the lease. Please note, this is not available to all shared owners - your lease will set out whether you are eligible. 

Once you let us know you want to buy more shares, we will send you an information leaflet with guidance on the steps you will need to take.

Traditional Staircasing

Buying shares from 5% is what we refer to as traditional staircasing. All shared owners can buy more shares in their home, the minimum amount can differ depending on your lease.

You should make enquiries with your Mortgage Lender regarding additional borrowing and how much you can borrow. This will determine the size of the further share which you may be able to buy. If you change mortgage companies, you should be aware of any redemption penalties you may have to pay.

You will be asked to provide a Royal Institute Chartered Surveyors (RICS) market valuation report. This valuation will set the price for buying more shares and will remain valid for 3 months.

You will need to provide us with the surveyor details for us to approve.

If you have carried out improvement works at your property, that have been approved by us, we will consider the added value that the improvements bring to your home. If the works haven’t received consent from us, it may mean that we will disregard the added value.

Once we have agreed the sale of the shares, we will instruct our solicitors who will communicate directly with your chosen solicitor to finalise the purchase.

Potential costs

You will need to pay fees to buy more shares. These may include but are not limited to:   

  • Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) valuation cost  
  • Solicitors/legal fees    
  • Mortgage fees (including valuation fees, if applicable) 
  • Stamp Duty 
  • Cost of your additional shares which will be based on the RICS valuation 
  • FGCH administration fee

Gradual staircasing

If you are eligible to buy additional shares of 1% each year for the first15 years from the commencement of the lease, you will receive a valuation from us each year. This is based on the house price index (HPI) and the valuation will remain valid for 3 months. You do not need a Royal Institute Chartered Surveyors (RICS) market valuation report.

You will be asked to evidence how you are funding the purchase. Following this, you will be sent the paperwork for signing.

When we agree a completion date with you, you will be asked to make payment for the 1% share to us.

Selling your share in the property

If you want to move and sell your share in the property you are entitled to do this at any time.  You can notify us by emailing enquiries@fgch.co.uk or speaking to us on our phone number 01462 683307