Expert help

There can be considerable variations in fees charged by mortgage brokers. Some do not charge at all, while others will charge for a percentage of the mortgage loan or a fixed amount, so it might be beneficial to get multiple quotes when you’re looking to appoint a broker.

Once you have found a property that you’d like to buy, the relevant housing association will invite you to attend a financial assessment. Once completed, you’ll know the share that you’ll be buying and therefore the monthly rent payable at the outset, and can start to think about your mortgage options. If you are using a mortgage broker, you should contact them at this stage to start looking into suitable mortgage options.

Under the existing Stamp Duty Land Tax thresholds, first time buyers pay zero Stamp Duty on the first £425,000 of any home that costs up to £625,000, however, this will be dropping to £300,000 of any home that costs up to £500,000 in April 2025.

No – your mortgage can only go towards the purchase of the property itself, not towards Stamp Duty Land Tax.

Most Shared Ownership homes are sold on a leasehold basis by housing associations as part of their homeownership programmes, with the length of leases generally being 99, 125 or 999 years. The Shared Ownership lease sets out the rights and obligations of both the landlord (for example, a housing association or local authority) and the tenant (the shared owner).

The staircasing process is completely optional! While some buyers choose to buy additional shares in their home as their financial circumstances change, many owners choose to stay at their current owned share.

Unless you can afford to pay for the further shares from savings, staircasing will normally involve either taking a further advance from your current mortgage lender, or a new mortgage for both your existing mortgage and new shares from another lender. As your property is unlikely to be classified as a new-build, and the level of your deposit/equity may be a different percentage of your new borrowing, a better deal is often obtained with a re-mortgage.

A solicitor or conveyancer will be required to carry out the legal work associated with buying additional shares in your home, and some costs will likely be involved. If you are remortgaging as part of the staircasing process, several lenders will offer ‘free legals’ or money towards legal expenses as part of their offer. As it is more complex than a straight remortgage, a supplement is usually charged where the ‘free legals’ option is chosen.