Buying further shares in your home
You can buy more shares in your home after you become the owner. Buying more shares is known as ‘staircasing’. When you buy more shares, you’ll pay less rent. The payment reduction is because your rent is based on the landlord’s share.
You’ll need to pay for a valuation by a registered surveyor with the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) because the cost of your new share will depend on how much your home is worth when you want to buy the share.
If you decide to buy more shares, you must buy them within three months of the valuation date, or the home will need to be revalued.
You must pay your legal fees if you need legal advice when you buy a share. You will also need a legal adviser if you borrow money to pay for additional shares.
What is restricted staircasing?
Most Shared Ownership leases allow you to staircase up to 100%. However, some leases are capped at 70%, 75% or 80%. This rule is known as restricted staircasing.
The cap, put in place by local government, ensures there are Shared Ownership homes locally for future generations. We’ll let you know if restricted staircasing applies to your home in the property listing.
For example, if you were to buy a property with an 80% restriction and initially purchased a 50% share, then the maximum you could increase your share in the future would be 30%.
If you'd reached the maximum 80%, of course, you could sell your home at this share level to someone who wants to buy your home using the Shared Ownership scheme.
Calculating your new rent payments
As you buy more shares, your monthly rent payment will reduce. You can use our calculator to get an idea of how much your new monthly rental amount will be after the transaction has completed.
Getting mortgage advice
With so many mortgage lenders available, speaking to many different banks and building societies could sound like a daunting prospect and maybe even a bit scary.
Don’t worry; there are specialists to help. We work with organisations that specialise in providing advice about Shared Ownership mortgages.
They offer advice on what you can afford and, importantly, sustain, as well as the many products and offers available. They also confirm what homes are affordable and the level of share you could purchase in your home.
Not ready to speak with a mortgage broker? You can try our mortgage calculator to get an indication of monthly costs.