Shared Ownership

Sometimes housing associations can confuse buyers when purchasing shared ownership properties as when you are choosing how much of a share you can purchase the rent payable to the housing association will differ. Housing Associations can sell shares to you starting from 25%; the larger your share the lower your assured rent will be.

Shared ownership leases also contain staircasing provisions which aren’t always drafted in the most easy to understand format.

Shared ownership schemes are extremely helpful to those who want to get onto the property ladder but cannot afford to purchase a property outright, especially with the rising house prices in London and the surrounding areas.

We are Shared Ownership Property Specialists!

Ola Leslie Solicitors have specialised in this type of conveyancing for years and are able to explain the mechanics to you in simple straightforward terms. Our fees are fixed and competitive and we take into account that most shared ownership purchasers are first time buyers. We are able to meet the exchange deadlines that housing associations impose which are usually 28 days from the date that the draft contract documentation is issued. It is always important to have your mortgage in place at the beginning of the process so that you can adhere to the deadlines. You should make your financial advisor / mortgage broker aware of any deadlines when he/she is making your application.

What is Staircasing?

After some time you may be eligible to purchase a further share in your property or purchase the remainder. This isn’t compulsory and you should only do it as and when you can afford to do so. Some leases only permit leaseholders to purchase certain percentages at a time.

When staircasing, Ola Leslie Solicitros can carry out the legal work for you, whether you are buying the extra share with cash, by way of the aid of a further advance from your mortgage lender or by way of re-mortgaging with a new lender. We also carry out this process at a fixed fee so that your costs don’t escalate.

Selling a Shared Ownership Property

There are certain provisions in the lease which restrict dispositions. Housing Associations usually have the first right of refusal or they can find a purchaser for you. Alternatively, if they do not respond to you within a reasonable amount of time then you should be able to put the property on the market yourself. Housing Associations always ensure that the property is sold at market value which is partly why they need to be informed of the sale.

We also deal with simultaneous sale and staircasing at a fixed fee if this is something that you are considering when selling.

Stamp Duty Liability

Another helpful factor with shared ownership purchases is that if the value of the share that you purchase initially is less than £125,000.00, you will not be liable to pay any stamp duty land tax. When you staircase and exceed the threshold for stamp duty liability, you will be able to pay the tax due on each separate stage.

We are based on Borough High Street in London Bridge (Southwark), London, however we deal with conveyancing all over England and Wales. We don’t expect you to use slow websites for five-worded generic updates, we always frequently email, telephone and/or send sms messages to you to keep you informed.