15 new Shared Ownership homes for Owlthorpe

A home at the Owlthorpe Shared Ownership Scheme

The council’s new Shared Ownership scheme, which helps people buy part shares in a home they want to purchase, will see 15 new two, three and four-bedroomed homes become available between now and July 2023.

The scheme, approved last year, saw the council become a provider and manager of Shared Ownership homes, which are built or acquired as part of the council’s programme for increasing the number of new homes in the city, the Stock Increase Programme.

To be eligible for the scheme, buyers must:

• Use the property as their primary residence
• Not able to afford to buy their home outright
• Not own another home somewhere else unless their current home is in the process of being sold

They will be able to buy a share of a house from the council and pay subsidised rent on the remaining share which is retained by the council. The properties will be advertised on Rightmove.

Those interested in finding out more about whether the scheme will suit them, should contact the council’s Shared Ownership Team at SharedOwnership@sheffield.gov.uk

Prospective buyers will need to find out how much they can borrow and undergo affordability checks by a mortgage lender. They will also need to provide a deposit on the share that they will be purchasing. More information is at: https://www.sheffield.gov.uk/housing/shared-ownership

The council assesses the need for affordable housing every 5 years and in the last Strategic Housing Market Assessment (SHMA) in 2019 it was found that Sheffield had an affordable housing shortfall of 902 homes each year for the next 5 years.

Councillor Terry Fox, Leader of Sheffield City Council, said: “Young families, couples or single people who can afford to buy part of a new home through either a deposit or a mortgage but who can’t get a mortgage for the full value of the property will see this progress as welcome news.  It’s so important to open up these opportunities for households on limited incomes to part purchase their homes if they want to or if they cannot afford to buy in full. To see the first houses becoming available is so good to see, and whilst I know we need many more new homes, every bit of progress in the right direction helps.”

Purchasers will need to raise a sufficient deposit, usually between 5% and 10% and secure a mortgage to buy a share of the property. They will pay rent on the part of the property that is owned by the council. At first, they will be able to buy between 10% and 75% of the home based on their ability to afford the purchase and can keep buying shares until they own the property outright, known as ‘staircasing’. Purchasers will be able to buy a further 1% stake each year for the first 15 years or choose to buy a larger stake from 5% upwards at any time.

Background information:

• The Shared Ownership model provides a 10-year period on new build homes during which the costs of some repairs would be met by the council. Only after 10 years does the shared owner take on full responsibility for repairs costs. This 10-year period is in addition to any repairs or maintenance covered by the builder’s warranty and so it would cover any works required that the building warranty does not cover.
• Shared Ownership not only provides a way for households to contribute towards meeting their housing needs it also helps relieve housing register pressures and reduce competition for social rented homes.
• Sheffield City Council estimates that there are over 5,200 households registered for a council or housing association rented home in Sheffield who have the financial ability to purchases a 25% stake in a 3-bedroom shared ownership property.
• This scheme is designed to help people who want to start paying towards the purchase of a property. Social housing is a tenure of choice for many households, but at the moment households are registered for housing on average 8 years before being granted a tenancy.