Selling your shared owner home

selling your home

You can sell your share in your home at any time providing the intended buyer fulfils our criteria. This is called Lease Assignment.

Find out what's involved in selling your share

  • 1. Get in touch with us

    If you're thinking about moving, or have decided to sell your home, please get in touch with us.

    We’ll then write to you requesting further information to enable us to proceed.

    You can contact us by email, call 0300 1234 009, or send us a message via myhomeonline

  • 2. Who can buy my share?

    Any purchaser buying your share must qualify for shared ownership.

    We would ask potential purchasers to complete a Help to Buy application to confirm their eligibility for shared ownership.

    As this is a rural home, the buyer will need to have a local connection to the area to meet the original planning permissions.

    This is because these homes have been built specifically to help local people.  The local area connection criteria varies between each development, but is generally being a current or previous resident, having family connections or working in the village which may sometimes include neighbouring parishes.

  • 3. Get your property valued

    We’ll ask you to obtain a valuation of your property, to establish the current market value.

    This must be done by an independent surveyor, qualified through the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS). Please note that you’ll be responsible for paying the valuation fee.

    We recommend you use a surveyor with experience of shared ownership leases and their resale requirements. We can provide details of experienced surveyors if required (they are not associated with our organisation).

  • 4. Finding a buyer

    We market your property

    Once we’ve received the valuation from you, we have eight weeks to market the property locally.

    It really helps if you can supply us with good quality images of all the rooms in your house and outdoor spaces.
    We'll also need you to provide an Energy Performance Certificate EPC before we can market your home.

    We'll market your property by:

    • facebook advertising
    • contacting relevant people from our database who have registered an interest

    Home viewings

    We'll coordinate booking the appointments for potential buyers to view your home. 
    You will need be available to show your home to the potential buyers.

    If we don't find a buyer

    If we’re unable to find a suitable purchaser within that time, then you’re free to sell the share in your property through an estate agent of your choice, at the agreed selling price. You cannot sell the property as freehold, only the share that you currently own.

    If you sell your share through an estate agent, you must make sure that they are aware the property is shared ownership. We would also contact them to advise them of our interest in the property and inform them of the information regarding the shared ownership lease and the planning agreement which needs to be passed on to any purchasers.

    Who can buy my share?

    • Any purchaser buying your share must qualify for shared ownership
      We would ask potential purchases to complete a Help to Buy application to confirm their eligibility for shared ownership.

    • As this is a rural home, the buyer will need to have a local connection to the area to meet the original planning permissions.  This is because these homes have been built specifically to help local people.  The local area connection criteria varies between each development, but is generally being a current or previous resident, having family connections or working in the village which may sometimes include neighbouring parishes.
  • 5. New buyer application

    Once you've found someone who wants to purchase your share, they should contact us to arrange an interview and affordability check to confirm if they are acceptable onto the scheme. They can contact us by email or call on 0300 1234 009.

    Once this has been done we’ll take up any references and then inform both you and the applicant of our decision.

    If the proposed purchaser is accepted onto the scheme, they should then formally apply for a mortgage (if required) and instruct a solicitor to act for them.

    We would ask potential purchases to complete a Help to Buy application to confirm their eligibility for shared ownership.

  • 6. Sale agreed and completion

    You can then inform your solicitor of the proposed assignment. They will then in turn contact the purchaser’s solicitor directly to begin the legal proceedings.

  • Administration costs

    As part of the sales process an administration fee of £250 +VAT, from both the seller and buyer, will be payable to us on completion.

  • Get legal advice

    A shared ownership lease is a complex document, and we recommend you seek legal advice early in the process.

Please note: the information on this page is for guidance only. You should always refer to your lease for comprehensive information and get legal advice where necessary.