Shared Ownership Mortgages

Shared ownership is a government-backed scheme that lets you buy a share of a property, typically 25% to 75%, and pay rent on the remaining share to a housing association. Over time you can buy more shares, known as staircasing, increasing your ownership up to 100%. It is designed to make buying more accessible for people who cannot afford to purchase outright.

Your deposit is calculated against the share you buy, not the full property value. Most lenders ask for 5% to 10% of your share. On a 40% share of a £250,000 home (a £100,000 share), a 5% deposit is just £5,000. Skipton Building Society also offers a Shared Ownership Track Record mortgage at 100% LTV, currently 5.69% (last checked 23 June 2026), which lets eligible renters buy with no deposit at all. Rates can change at any time, so confirm the current rate before relying on it.

You must be at least 18 with a household income below £80,000 outside London or below £90,000 inside London. You should be a first-time buyer, a previous homeowner who can no longer afford the open market, or an existing shared owner looking to move. If you currently own a home, you must sell it before completing on a shared ownership purchase.

Staircasing is buying additional shares in your shared ownership home over time. You can usually buy in increments of 10% or more, and newer leases sometimes allow 1% steps in the first 15 years. Each time, the price is based on a fresh valuation. As your share grows, the rent on the unsold portion falls. Once you reach 100%, you stop paying rent altogether.

Yes. If you have not staircased to 100%, the housing association usually has a nomination period, typically 8 weeks, to find a buyer for your share. If they cannot find one in that window, you can market the property on the open market. If you have already staircased to 100%, you can sell freely like any other homeowner.

Beyond your mortgage and the rent on the unsold share, budget for service charges (communal areas, building insurance and external maintenance), ground rent on most leasehold properties, buildings insurance where it is not included, and interior repairs and maintenance. Service charges are reviewed annually and can rise, so always ask the housing association for the current schedule and recent history before you commit.

Cosmetic changes such as decorating are usually allowed without permission. Larger renovations, structural alterations or anything affecting the fabric of the building normally need written consent from the housing association. Improvements that increase the value can also push up the cost of staircasing later, because your next share is priced against the new valuation. Always check your lease and speak to the housing association before starting work.

Contact your lender and your housing association as soon as you anticipate a problem. Both are obliged under FCA and government rules to treat customers in financial difficulty fairly, and can often agree temporary payment plans, term extensions or, in some cases, forbearance. Ignoring it risks arrears, damage to your credit file and ultimately repossession or forfeiture of your lease, so early communication is critical.

Yes. Most shared ownership purchases allow up to four joint applicants, such as a partner, friend or family member. Lenders assess all applicants’ incomes and credit histories together, which often lets you afford a larger share than buying alone. Joint Borrower Sole Proprietor structures can also be considered with some lenders, where a parent or family member helps with affordability but is not on the title deeds.

It is possible, but more challenging. Some specialist lenders accept missed payments, defaults or historic CCJs for shared ownership, though they may charge higher rates or ask for a larger deposit on your share. Pulling your free credit report first, settling open defaults, and waiting until adverse events are older than 24 months will all materially improve your options. We can match your profile to the right shared ownership lender.

Yes. You can remortgage to switch to a better rate, reduce monthly payments, or raise capital to staircase and buy more shares. The process is similar to a standard remortgage, but the new lender must be on the housing association’s panel and accept shared ownership leases. We have access to the full panel of shared ownership remortgage lenders, including those who allow simultaneous staircasing.

Almost all shared ownership properties are leasehold, with typical leases of 99, 125 or 990 years from new. Most lenders want at least 70 to 85 years remaining at the end of the mortgage term. If your lease drops below 80 years, the cost of extending rises sharply due to marriage value. Extend proactively while your lease is still long to protect both your resale value and your ability to remortgage.

Yes. Standard shared ownership has no upper age limit, subject to lender criteria on mortgage term and retirement income. There is also a dedicated Older People’s Shared Ownership (OPSO) scheme for buyers aged 55 and over, which caps the maximum share at 75% but means you never pay rent on the remaining 25%. This can be a tax-efficient way to right-size in later life on a fixed income.

Yes. Serving members of the British armed forces, and in many schemes recent veterans and bereaved spouses of service personnel, receive priority on allocations alongside Ministry of Defence support such as the Forces Help to Buy advance. This reflects the relocation pressures and short-notice postings that affect service families. Individual housing associations set their own priority bands, so confirm policy on each scheme.

Help to Buy provided a government equity loan on new builds and is now closed to new applicants in England. First Homes offers a 30% to 50% discount off the open market price of designated new-build properties for eligible first-time buyers. Rent-to-buy is a discounted market rent product with a save-and-buy option later. Shared ownership is the most widely available and longest-established route, and uniquely lets you build equity from day one on a part-buy, part-rent basis with the option to staircase to full ownership.

Yes. Skipton Building Society’s Shared Ownership Track Record mortgage lends up to 100% of the share value, currently at 5.69%. To qualify you need 12 months of evidenced on-time rental payments in the last 18 months, a clean recent credit history, and a share value within Skipton’s loan size limits. This is the only true no-deposit option for shared ownership purchases in the UK at the time of writing.