About shared ownership

You are eligible to buy a shared ownership home if:

• your household income is less than £80,000
• you cannot afford to buy a home in the traditional way
• you’re a first-time buyer or, you previously owned a home but can’t afford to buy one now
• for some developments you will need to have a local connection to the area

You will need to pay for your share of your home before you can move in. You might be able to pay this in full, however you may need a mortgage to cover this cost. The good news is, you don’t have to put down a huge deposit to secure your shared ownership mortgage; deposits can be as little as 5% of your share.

In addition to purchasing your share of the property, you will also need to pay some one-off costs such as legal fees and stamp duty. See our buyer’s guide for a list of potential one-off and regular costs.

Selwood Housing has a number of shared ownership homes that are currently available or that will be available in the future. Visit our available homes page for more information.

Some developments fall within a section 106 agreement. This can mean that applicants must have a local connection to the area. This will be clearly highlighted on our property listing where this applies.

Please contact us on 01225 715 715 if you wish to sell your current shared ownership home.

You will need to contact us to request permission to keep pets in your home. If you live in or are purchasing a shared ownership house, it is more likely that you will be able to have pets.

All pets must be kept under proper care and control.

Shared ownership homes: buying, improving and selling: How shared ownership works – GOV.UK
Comprehensive information from the government website about purchasing a home through shared ownership in England.

Shared Ownership Leases – The Leasehold Advisory Service
A government funded, independent advice service for leaseholders, including shared owners.

You may also wish to seek your own financial advice.

Our homeowner alterations policy explains when Selwood Housing home ownership customers can make changes to their homes. It helps make sure any work is carried out safely, meets legal and health and safety requirements, and protects the property’s condition for the future.

Our customer guide to homeowner alterations supports the policy and explains what homeowner customers need to consider before making alterations to their home.

Yes. A reservation fee is paid when you reserve your home. This secures your home.

When you reserve your home, we require a £250 deposit.

If you decide you no longer wish to proceed with your purchase, the reservation fee is fully refundable until you have viewed the property or 14 days from the date of reservation, whichever occurs first.

After this point, if you decide not to proceed with your purchase, or we have to withdraw from the sale due to lack of progress due to circumstances within your control, such as failure to respond to communications, providing requested information or taking reasonable steps to progress your purchase in the timeframe given at reservation, we will retain the £250 reservation fee to cover our costs.

There are a number of fixtures in your home that come with a manufacturer’s warranty. To ensure you receive the full benefit of this cover, please register any warranties supplied with your home directly with the manufacturer.

Please be aware that some manufacturers require registration within a specific timeframe, and failing to do so may affect the level of warranty cover available. In some cases, this could mean that the cost of repairs or replacements may not be covered under the warranty, and you may become responsible for any necessary repairs or replacements.

Where fixtures require servicing, this will need to be undertaken to ensure the warranty remains valid. As an improvement, we are starting to give customers a summary table with information on the warranties provided with your new home in one place.

If a company you have a warranty with goes out of business during the time of the warranty, we will help customers investigate what alternatives or recourse there may be.