Help To Buy:
Shared Ownership
in Cambridgeshire, Hertfordshire and Suffolk
Help to Buy: Shared Ownership offers you the chance to buy a share of your home (between 25% and 75% of the home’s value) and pay rent on the remaining share. If you want to, you can buy bigger shares later on when you can afford them.
You can buy a newly-built home, or an existing one through resale programmes from housing associations. You’ll need to take out a mortgage to pay for your share of the home’s purchase price, or fund this through your savings. Shared Ownership properties are always leasehold.
We valued around £25 million Shared Ownership and Equity Loan schemes last year, so you can be sure that our service is completely impartial and will satisfy your Housing Associations requirements. We work regularly with many of the region's Housing Associations and have a 100% acceptance record.
Valuation criteria vary between housing providers, and we will engage with your provider wherever necessary to ensure your valuation satisfies their scheme's needs.
When do I need a Shared Ownership valuation?
You will usually need an RICS valuation when purchasing a further share of your property's equity (‘staircasing’), buying out the remaining share, or selling back your share if you move. Most Housing Associations allow a minimum 'staircasing' purchase of 10% of the remaining share, but this can vary.
In most of these circumstances you must have the property independently valued by an RICS registered valuer, who is fully accredited under the RICS Valuers Registration Scheme (VRS).
The valuation must follow RICS 'Red Book' rules, and usually means valuing the property against similar properties which have sold within the last year, although exact requirements do vary between providers.
