Shared Ownership Mortgages
Shared ownership mortgages are also sometimes referred to as part rent or part buy. This points out one of the most significant characteristics of having shared ownership which distinguishes it from all the other different types of joint ownership. That is, when you usually purchase a certain percentage of a property that is owned by another housing association and then that party will pay rent on the part that you don’t own. So it is like sharing a house with someone, therefore sharing the payment of the rent. It is up to you to determine how much you would like to buy, you can even buy as little as 25% and then gradually work your way up until you are able to afford more. This process is referred to as “staircasing”.
There are three main things to remember if you are interested in shared ownership mortgages, you should know for sure and take note of;
• What percentage you would like to buy
• If you are going to be putting down a deposit, how much is it going to be?
• The rent you pay for the share that is not yours. You want to know this because it will be needed to work out the amount that can be borrowed.