What is Staircasing – Shared Ownership Homes
A Guide To Staircasing – Shared Ownership Homes
Staircasing is the process of buying more shares in your shared ownership home.
When you own a shared ownership property, this means you own part of rather than the whole property – often it is between 25% and 75% and rent is paid on the remaining share you do not own.
Shared ownership properties are always leasehold.
Depending on the terms of your lease, once you have lived in your property for a certain period you can decide to buy more shares in it.
Staircasing enables shared owners to increase the percentage of shares they own in their home, with most owners being able to staircase all to way to 100% ownership.
Types Of Staircasing
There are 2 types of staircasing:
- Interim Staircasing
This is the purchase of additional shares up to but not reaching 100% ownership - Final Staircasing
This is the purchase of the final shares of the property so that you own 100% and are no longer a shared owner
What Are The Benefits Of Staircasing?
There are many benefits of staircasing, including:
- The ability to own a greater share of your home
- As you buy more shares, your mortgage increases but your rent decreases
- You can usually purchase 100% of the shares which means no rent to pay, only mortgage and any service charges and ground rent
- You gain from any increase in the value of your home
- If you own 100% of your home, you can sell it how you want to
- More mortgage options as you can choose a standard mortgage rather than a shared ownership mortgage
Can Everyone Choose Staircasing?
Most shared ownership property owners can choose to buy additional shares in their home, known as staircasing.
However, not everyone can and it’s important to check the terms of your lease in case there are limitations on your property. Some properties have a cap at 80% shared ownership.
How Much Does It Cost To Staircase?
As well as the purchase price of the additional shares you want to buy during staircasing, there are other costs involved too, such as:
- Housing association administration fees
- Conveyancing fees
- Surveyor report costs
- Remortgage costs
- Stamp duty costs, depending on the ownership level
Can You Only Sell If You Own 100% Of The Shares?
No, you can sell your shared ownership property at any time. However, if you don’t own 100% of the shares, you need to contact your housing association first to check it’s within the terms of your lease before getting an independent valuation. Your provider will usually market your home for the first set period – if it doesn’t sell in this time, you’ll be able to sell it privately or through an agent.
Staircasing Rules
Current Staircasing Rules
Existing shared owners need to take the following steps to buy additional shares:
- Check the terms of your lease
- Contact your housing provider
- Give notice that you intend to staircase
New Staircasing Rules
If you bought a home under the new rules, the following applies:
- You have the option to staircase by 1% each year for 15 years from the purchase date
- You need to contact your housing provider first
Helping You With Staircasing
Our specialist solicitors are here to help you with every aspect of staircasing and are here to support you through the process.
Once you’ve decided on the share you’d like to buy and had confirmation from the housing association that you can do this, simply appoint one of our solicitors to act on your behalf. The association will arrange for the independent valuation and make an offer to you for the shares you’d like to buy – your solicitor will then guide you through the conveyancing process for staircasing, negotiating any remortgaging that is needed and help with any necessary lease changes.
If you have any questions or want to speak to our property law solicitors about staircasing, you can contact us at our Chorlton office on 0161 860 7123 or email chorlton@hlfberry.com or at our Failsworth office on 0161 681 4005 or email failsworth@hlfberry.com and we will be happy to help.
