We are a nation keen to own our own home, but for many this is a pipe dream; out of reach and unattainable. 

The situation is worsening for some due to wages lagging behind rising house prices.  In London house prices have grown by more than 20% in the last year and, as a result, the private rented sector has doubled since 2000. A joint report has called on the housing sector, government and funders to work together to increase the supply of shared ownership homes to 30,000 thereby reducing the UK’s growing affordability crisis.

The Shared Ownership 2.0 report summary was issued by Orbit Group and the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) in February 2015. It sets out the key issues that government, housing providers, lenders and regulators will need to address to increase shared ownership from its current 15,000 homes per year to at least 30,000 within the next Parliament. This is around 13% of the 240,000 new homes needed annually. 

Key Points
Agree a consistent way of collecting data, such as stair casing activity, arrears levels, and levels of default, to support increased lender and investor confidence.

• Reintroduce DIY shared ownership in areas where there is a clear commitment in Local Plans to increasing the number of affordable homes.
• Keep current levels of grant funding and support the development of an equity loan model to increase scale.
• Consider and review the way shared ownership lending is treated by the regulator, in order to level the playing field, as far as possible, between shared ownership mortgages and traditional ones.
• Support shared ownership to become a mainstream product, to help develop of a more diverse mortgage market for this type of lending. 
• Shared ownership cases can be complex and problematic and you need to ensure that the Solicitor acting for you has the relevant knowledge and experience to assist properly.