Buying schemes

Discover the buying schemes available at
Leaside Lock

Shared Ownership

Shared Ownership* is another way to buy your home. You buy a percentage and pay rent on the rest. Guinness owns part of it – but you’re living there, you decorate it and decide when to sell.

Buying a percentage means a smaller deposit and a smaller mortgage. It’s a sooner first step on the ladder for lots of people. Usually, you can carry on buying further shares to own it 100%.

Am I eligible?

Eligibility to buy a home using Shared Ownership is governed by Homes England. In summary, you need to be over 18 and resident in the UK.

When purchasing using Shared Ownership there is a maximum household income. Your household income should be less than £80,000 (this is increased to £90,000 if you are buying a home in London).

Do I have to live in a specific area?

Most of our homes are available for everyone to apply. In some cases, if the property is in a rural area, it is likely that you’ll need to prove a local connection to the area in which the homes are built, or the surrounding areas.

Can I buy with a smaller deposit?

Buying a share means you need a lower mortgage and deposit than purchasing a property outright. This makes it a cost-effective way to own your own home and ideal for first-time buyers. Shared Ownership usually works out less per month than renting privately, and you can enjoy the benefits of being a homeowner rather than a tenant.

What share will I buy?

You’ll buy a share ranging from 25% to 75%, we’ll tell you in the property listing on this website the minimum percentage that can be purchased.

You’ll need to be able to get a mortgage or have savings to cover the price of the share. You should remember that you need to pay your mortgage and rent payments each month as well as the usual household outgoings. To help you, we’ll carry out an affordability check to make sure you won’t be stretching yourself too much financially.

How do I arrange a Shared Ownership mortgage?

We can put you in touch with our panel of mortgage brokers who specialise in Shared Ownership sales so you can be confident that you’ll get expert advice during the buying process.

How do I choose a Shared Ownership solicitor?

You can use a solicitor of your choosing, or we can put you in touch with one of our panel of solicitors to help you purchase your new home.

What properties are available?

We have both brand new and previously owned Shared Ownership homes across England, you can search for properties using the search function here.

What happens in the future?

Once you’ve moved in and you’ve settled you might decide to buy further shares until you own the property outright or alternatively you might sell your home. We will help you with both these options.

Where can I find more information?

For more information, you can download our guide to buying your Shared Ownership home.

*Shared Ownership – Terms and conditions apply. This scheme is subject to status and fitting criteria. Minimum and maximum share values will apply and rent is payable on the unsold share.

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London Help to Buy: Equity Loan

What is it?

An Equity Loan Assistance Program provided by the Government (Homes England) which only applies to registered new build homes in England
Available to all First Time Buyers with a min 5% deposit. However it must be the only residence
The government will lend a maximum of 20% (up to £120,000), 40% in London (up to £240,000) on a property value up to £600,000
Regional property price caps are in place. For London the maximum property value is £600,000

How it works

The buyer will work with a local Help to Buy agent to get approval before proceeding with the buying process
Once the property is identified, the buyer fills out the Property Information Form (PIF). This confirms purchase price, mortgage, deposit, and household income The PIF must be sent to the local Help to Buy agent.
The buyer will receive Authority to Proceed – within four working days of submitting PIF
The buyer must then take out a mortgage at least 25% of the value of property to purchase. It is advised to seek counsel of an Independent Financial Advisor to compare lenders:
– In England, mortgage + deposit must be a minimum of 80% of full purchase price
– In London, mortgage + deposit must be at least 60% of full purchase price
The buyer does not have to start repaying the loan for five years but must be repaid in 25 years
After five years, an interest fee of 1.75% applies to the loan. This fee is not considered part of the repayment of the loan and therefore does not reduce amount owed
The interest rates will rise each year in April by Consumer Price Index (CPI) plus 2%

Can you afford it?

One time payments

Reservation fee (if required) up to £500
At least 5% deposit
Fees upon completion: stamp duty (if not first time buyer), legal fees

Monthly payments

After five years, there are repayments on loan (+ interest) on top of monthly mortgage payments
£1/month management fee to Homes England. This fee is not considered part of the repayment of the loan and therefore does not reduce amount owed
It is advised that monthly costs (mortgage, fees, and service charges) are no more than 45% net disposable income

Further information

Homes England has an entitlement to share future sale proceeds equal to the percent contribution if the buyer sells the property before the loan is fully paid off

Help to Buy† cannot be used by buy-to-let investors or those looking to rent out a second property
Help to Buy† cannot be used if you have previously owned a home or residential land in the UK or abroad

†London Help to Buy: Equity Loan – Terms and conditions apply. Please contact us for further details. More information can be found on www.helptobuy.gov.uk. Subject to eligibility, terms and conditions.