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Shared Ownership Conveyancing
The information on this page has been created with solicitors in mind concerning lender specific obligations in connection with shared ownership conveyancing. Private Registered Providers of Social Housing, alternative social landlords and new build developers sometimes provide schemes under which a mortgagee will not have complete proprietorship of the property and a third party will also have a share or will be a having an interest over the title. In such situations the conveyancing lawyer is obliged to check with the lending bank to be sure whether they will go ahead with the loan and what their requirements are.
The Council of Mortgage Lenders Part 2’s dictates their instructions (and even reveals to the conveyancer whether they are prepared to lend in shared ownership circumstances at all). For instance:
| Lender | Policy |
|---|---|
| Capital Home Loans | Not applicable. We will not lend on properties to which this section applies. |
| Foundation Home loans | Not Applicable. We do not current lend on properties involving these schemes. |
| Investec | We do not lend in these circumstances. |
| Parity Trust | As 1.7 |
| Skipton Building Society | If you have been instructed to act for the Society in relation to a shared ownership application, please see the mortgage offer, including the associated ‘Instructions to Conveyancers’ document for details of our requirements. If you require a copy of the Instructions to Conveyancers, please contact the Completions team on 0345 6079850. |
| Royal Bank of Scotland -Natwest One | We do not lend on shared ownership properties other than in circumstances where the transaction in question will result in the borrower owning 100% of the property at completion. For shared equity and affordable housing you need to notify us (as detailed above in 1.11a) giving details of the proposal. |
| Yorkshire Building Society | We do not lend where the transaction involves either a shared equity scheme or shared ownership of the property. |
Selection of Shared Ownership Conveyancing Questions:
- I own thirty percent of a shared ownership apartment. Now I want to staircase the residual seventy percent. I used the surveyor recommended by the housing association. The valuation gave the price is £355k. But my neighbor has an identical flat and used the same surveyor, but his flat price was £325k only due to his need to sell. Do you have any advice on what I can do to get my valuation price reduced?
- My fiancee and I in the process of purchasing our shared ownership home outright. The Housing Association valuation is 22k over the bank’s figure. I have spoken with the Association to lower the valuation and they advised that because their "independent surveyor" will not vary his valuation they are refusing to reduce the valuation in line with the bank’s valuation.
- if Purchasing a shared ownership property what level of deposit does one require, 5% of the share or of total property value?
- We are staircasing up to 100%, our solicitor is advising she is unsure whether we are likely to benefit so she is recommending we pay the larger amount. Is this right?