Living in a shared ownership home

In a shared ownership home you own a share and pay rent on the rest. The rent is usually reviewed once a year, you can buy more of your home through staircasing, and when you sell the housing association normally gets a period to find a buyer first. Newer leases also cover the cost of some essential repairs for the first ten years.

Shared ownership does not stop being different once you have the keys. The rent, the option to buy more of your home, the way you sell and who pays for repairs all follow rules that do not apply to an ordinary purchase. Knowing them in advance makes the years that follow far less stressful.

Your rent review

You pay rent to the housing association on the share you do not own, and that rent is usually reviewed once a year. How much it can rise by depends on the age of your lease: leases granted from October 2023 typically use CPI inflation plus 1%, while older leases commonly use RPI plus 0.5%.

Put the review date in your diary so the letter is never a surprise, and check the sums when it arrives. Ask the association which inflation figure and which month they have used, and query anything that does not match the formula in your lease.

Staircasing - buying more of your home

Staircasing means buying a bigger share of your own home. Each time you buy more, the rent you pay reduces proportionally, because you are renting less of it.

Newer-model leases allow small steps of 1% at a time for the first fifteen years, and in many cases the valuation fee for those small steps is not charged to you. Larger steps need a formal RICS valuation and a solicitor. Some homes, usually in rural or protected areas, cap staircasing at 80% so you cannot buy outright.

A RICS valuation for larger steps, valid for a limited period.
Solicitor's fees for the legal work on each purchase.
Possible mortgage arrangement or product fees if you borrow more.
Stamp duty considerations once you pass 80%, if you originally paid stamp duty on your share only.

Selling a shared ownership home

You can sell, but usually not straight onto the open market. The housing association normally has a nomination period - commonly four to eight weeks, though your lease is what counts - to find a buyer from its own waiting list first.

You can sell the share you own, or staircase to 100% and sell the whole home. If you are selling a share, the buyer usually has to meet shared ownership eligibility rules, which narrows the pool of buyers compared with an ordinary sale.

Repairs and the 10-year period

On newer-model leases the landlord covers the cost of essential repairs to the external fabric and installations for the first ten years. It applies to new homes only, up to set limits, and only while you own less than 100%.

You still arrange your own contents insurance and handle day-to-day maintenance. On older leases there is no such cover: you are responsible for repairs from day one, even though you only own a share.

If you're struggling with payments

Talk to the housing association early. Rent and service charge arrears can put your home at risk in the same way mortgage arrears can, and associations have far more room to help someone who contacts them before the arrears build up.

Free, independent advice is available from Shelter and Citizens Advice, and it is worth getting it early rather than waiting for formal letters.

Key takeaway

Diarise your rent review, understand the staircasing steps your lease allows, check your nomination period before you plan a sale, and speak to the housing association at the first sign of payment trouble.

Frequently asked questions

How much can shared ownership rent go up each year?

It depends on your lease. Leases granted from October 2023 typically rise by CPI plus 1%, and older leases commonly by RPI plus 0.5%. Your lease sets the formula and the review date, so check it against the letter you receive.

Does staircasing reduce my rent?

Yes. The rent is charged on the share you do not own, so buying more of your home reduces the rent proportionally. You will need to budget for valuation, legal and possibly mortgage costs each time.

Can I sell a shared ownership home whenever I want?

You can sell, but the housing association usually has a nomination period, typically four to eight weeks, to find a buyer first. Check your lease for the exact period before you make plans.

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