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Government plans cut to minimum shared ownership stake

Emma Lunn
Written By:
Emma Lunn
Posted:
Updated:
17/10/2019

The government has announced a further revamp of the shared ownership scheme, cutting the minimum stake from 25 per cent to 10 per cent.

It follows its move earlier this year to allow owners of shared ownership homes to increase their stake in increments of as little as one per cent.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) said that as a result prospective buyers would be able to purchase a stake in their homes for as little as £2,000 in some areas, and repeated its suggestion that by introducing a “preferred national model for shared ownership” it would make it easier to find an appropriate mortgage.

In addition, tenants in new housing association properties will be granted the automatic right to buy a share in the property of at least 10 per cent, with the option of increasing that over time, up to full ownership.

The government said it would work with housing associations “on a voluntary basis” to calculate what offer can be made to those already in housing association properties, so that they may also be able to take part in what it has termed ‘right to shared ownership’.

Robert Jenrick, the housing secretary, said the government was determined to help people realise the ambition of home ownership.

He said: “Owning a home is not just about the four walls around you, it’s about investing in your family, saving for the future and putting down roots in a community. These measures announced today will mean more people, including residents living in new housing association homes, are given the opportunity to get on to the housing ladder.”