Your new home
You have a number of choices when finding a home with us, including buying your home outright or as part of a shared ownership scheme. Whatever your situation, there are a number of options and flexibility to ensure you can find your perfect home.
Private Sale
When you buy a property from us you can be confident that your new home will be immaculately designed. We work with leading consultants and architects who bring skill, vision and innovation to each and every one of our schemes.
We partner with leading interior designers who know how to make a home welcoming, functional and beautiful. We also work with landscape designers who ensure that the space your home inhabits is a pleasure to live in and makes the most from the location we have carefully selected. We consider the environment and make use of water and energy saving devices, and we build future proof homes, installing the newest technologies available.
We will guide you through the purchase of your property from the moment you decide on your home to the thrill of moving day. Our dedicated and award-winning customer services team will make sure your journey is smooth and enjoyable, and remain on hand to address any concerns once you’ve moved in.
The Consumer Code for Homebuilders is the industry led code of conduct for builders, developed to make buying a home fairer and more transparent for purchasers. It gives you protection and rights when you buy a new build home. It ensures you are fully informed throughout the buying process, are aware of what level of service to expect and can rely on a quick and low cost dispute resolution system if there are any complaints.
For more information on the Consumer Code for Homebuilders please visit the website.
Shared Ownership
If you are not in a position to purchase the full share of a property, we offer a variety of homes to buy under the shared ownership scheme. We will provide you with everything you need to know including how to apply, the cost of buying and eligibility criteria.
What is Shared Ownership?
Shared ownership is an affordable way to buy a home which involves part owning, part renting a property. It’s designed to help people who can’t afford to buy a home at full market value and allows you to buy a share of a property (usually 25%–75%) and pay rent on the part you don’t own. You’ll need to take out a mortgage to pay for your share. When you can afford to, you may wish to increase your shares until you own the entire property. This is known as ‘staircasing’. You will also pay a service charge for your home, which is usually charged on a monthly basis.
There are lots of good reasons to buy a shared ownership home:
- Buy chain free
- Have a 12 year construction warranty from a leading warranty provider
- Buy in a sought after development in high demand area
- Own a skilfully produced, meticulously designed home in an area you want to live
How does it work?
The price of the share you buy is determined by a property valuation, carried out by a Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) qualified surveyor. On the share of the home you don’t own, you will pay us rent. For example, if you purchase 40% of your home, you will pay rent on the remaining 60%. You will need to have a financial assessment to establish the maximum share you can afford to buy.
What will you own?
Shared ownership properties are always leasehold. This means that you own the property for a fixed period of time – usually 125 years, and will have the normal rights and responsibilities of a normal purchaser. We will act as the landlord and will own the share that you don’t own.
How much will it cost?
The level of deposit you need depends on the cost of the share you would like to buy, and the mortgage you choose. In addition to your monthly mortgage and rent payments, you’ll need savings of around £4,000 to be able to cover the cost of the survey, legal fees and stamp duty (if applicable). The amount of deposit you will need depends on the mortgage provider you chose, the terms of the mortgage and your credit rating.
If you want to buy more shares, the cost of your new share will depend on how much your home is worth when you want to buy the share. If property prices in your area have gone up, you’ll pay more than for your first share. If your home has dropped in value, your new share will be cheaper. Buying additional shares will reduce the amount of rent you pay. If you staircase to the point where you own outright, you will no longer have rent to pay.
To qualify for shared ownership you will need to meet certain criteria set by the Local Authority, this criteria can vary for each scheme.
You should be eligible for shared ownership if:
- You are unable to afford a home that meets your needs
- You currently don’t own a property
- You have £4,000 to cover legal fees
- You live or work in the same borough as the property you want to buy
- You meet the household income criteria as set out below:
London
1, 2 & 3 bedroom - income less than £90,000Outside London
1, 2 & 3 bedroom - income less than £80,000
Applicants for shared ownership are prioritised based on the Local Authority criteria. Priority is generally given to applicants living or working in the same borough as the property they wish to buy. When prioritising applicants, the Local Authority will also consider whether:
- You are a housing association tenant
- You work in the Ministry of Defence
- You are a first time buyer
- You are deemed to be in a high priority group by the Local Authority
In some cases, the Local Authority use their own criteria to prioritise applicants.
Disclaimer
Please note the minimum incomes may vary for each scheme.
The information on this website concerning eligibility for New Build HomeBuy or shared ownership was current and correct when the website was last updated.
Eligibility criteria changes regularly and we make no representations or warranties with respect to the current accuracy of this information.
Before we can progress an enquiry, you will need to register with a HomeBuy agent to get your registration number. Once you have registered, please contact us with your registration number and we will be delighted to talk you through our portfolio of suitable homes and carefully guide you throughout the process.
For new build developments in London
You need to register with Share to Buy.
