Shared/Co-Ownership Mortgages

Have you spotted your dream home but then realized that you have not saved enough for deposit or can’t afford it? You may still have option to buy you dream home through shared ownership.

There are currently two shared ownership schemes available in Northern Ireland. The longest established is Co-Ownership, who have been helping people get onto the housing ladder since 1978. Co-Ownership is a facility where you buy a share of your home (between 50% – 90% of the home’s value) and pay rent on the remaining share. For your share you’ll need to have a mortgage, which we will arrange and help with the Co-Ownership process.

The second shared ownership scheme available is called FairShare. It works in a similar way to Co-Ownership, whereby you purchase between 50% – 90% of your home’s value and pay rent on the remaining share. However, it is only available on new builds and is restricted to 3 major housing associations – Apex, Clanmil and Choice. We will help you with all aspects of this.

Once you get onto property ladder further down the line you may be able to buy an increased share or indeed all of the Co-Ownership or FairShare elements. This process is known as staircasing and when you are ready to make this step we will always be at hand.

Share ownership rules differ in England, Wales and Scotland. To be eligible for share ownership in England your total income needs to be less than £80,000 a year (£90,000 a year if buying in London). The exact minimum and maximum shares available for purchase vary, and very much depend on which property and where you’re looking to buy (between 10% to 75%). 

In Scotland you can buy a 25%, 50% or 75% share of a home, The housing association will own the rest of the property. After you’ve been living there for a year, you can buy a larger share of your home if you want to. 

In Wales you can purchase of a initial share of between 25% to 75% of the value of the chosen property. To be eligible your combined household income has to be £60,000 or less each year and you have to be buying a share in an eligible home from participating landlord.

Do you want to find out more? Speak with us today.

Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage.