Would you consider shared ownership? if I am even eligible

[Trickymaths]

My credit rating is very low so I don’t know if I would even be eligible.
I have enough equity for a 40-45% share and the rent would be less than my current mortgage. It means I wouldn’t accumulate more equity over the next ten years - but I could live more comfortably. Between living costs and repaying debt things are really tight.
However if I continue with my mortgage (and being skint) I could probably help DC with deposits for housing in future.

No if you already have a mortgage I absolutely would not go to shared ownership (as you say it's very unlikely you'd be eligible Id have thought, as a current home owner). I would say it's a last resort for those who struggle to get on the ladder traditionally.

Without knowing anything else about you, I would prioritise the mortgage and keep going with that, can you extend the term to make it more manageable in the short term?

When we looked into it you had to have a good credit rating as the banks didn't really like shared ownership... it wasn't a preferable option for them.

I was thinking I might be eligible if I sold on the basis of not being able to raise a mortgage for a new purchase. I essentially have a home I cannot afford after a change of circumstances.

Re the credit rating, I wouldn’t be trying to get a mortgage from a bank as I would have equity. It’s whether the shared ownership would rent to me.

i perhaps need to speak to a mortgage broker and some shared ownership companies.

Keeping the mortgage going is probably the more sensible option - if I can. Although a higher standard of living would be nice. I don’t think I can try change the terms as I essentially have a mortgage banks would not give me now.

One problem with shared ownership is you can get stung with service charges that you have no control over.

The tricky part is you would have had to sell your current house or formally accept an offer on your house. This makes it difficult as you may have to rent whilst waiting for a shared ownership to become available should the timings not work.

you will still need a good credit rating to prove that you can pay the rent. Many housing associations consider bad debt to be too high a risk.

another thing to consider is the government page says that you can be eligible if the home you have doesn’t meet your needs. Very often housing associations will only consider a change if it is down to space, for example you have multiple children who need rooms. Some housing associations can be really difficult with this side of things

If you have a full mortgage now I’d do everything possible to keep your property. Shared ownership comes with so many unknown costs; I’ve heard loads of horror stories of the private management companies charging thousands for renovation work etc. you have no control over that. Plus the rent could go up.

Definitely not!

You have to pay rent AND service charge AND a mortgage. The rent can go up an insane amount and is usually more than a mortgage would be. On top of that you have all your bills etc.

Theres a development near me that’s shared ownership that my friend lives on. Her rent has gone up £200 a month AND the service charge has gone up £150 this year. Plus an extra £40 a month council tax + utility increases. She now pays £1,500 a month before she even pays her mortgage on the half she ‘owns’. Two years ago, £1,500 was her total including her mortgage - that’s how much her rent and service charge have gone up.

You’d be insane to do this.

We were going to buy a shared ownership place, but pulled out last minute as there were so many problematic things.
Remember as well as rent, you'll be paying for the mortgage and service charges. Both rent and the service charges will rise yearly. So whilst you may be able to afford it now, it will be more expensive in a few years. Also, you'll probably have to pay stamp duty and of course all the solicitors fees and mortgage fees too.

It seems I should try to hang on to the mortgage. I’m not sure how long it is sustainable. I have a car needing repairs, appliances that need replacing and no spare money.

That’s like me except I do live in shared ownership. It’s much more expensive than you first realise. Also, considering the housing association owns half we have to put up for the full cost of repairs both inside and outside. This also means that if we are ever in the position to make big changes which drive up the value, the housing association gets their cut despite never paying towards any kind of repairs. The rent and service charges have gone up steeply.

When repairs need to be done to communal areas, for example car park or access, we have to pay through a sinking fund however we have no say who does the work. Historically, everything that has been done is a bodge job and it’s a fight to get anything rectified.

We are unable to make changes like front doors and windows unless we get permission from the housing association. Also, any changes need to be ‘in keeping’ with the other houses. Most people just ignore that side though as at the end of the day we are the ones paying for it!

we have massively outgrown our house but have no chance of moving. Even when we tried for another shared ownership they wouldn’t even let us view it without having an accepted offer on our house. Even if we had an offer, with the amount of people trying to get shared ownership we weren’t guaranteed of being accepted. This would mean we would end up renting in the hopes that at some point we would be successful.

if I had the choice I would never get shared again