Share to buy

robin1981_2

I am interested in using the share to buy scheme and I had a few questions:

-Are all the legal fees the same as if I were buying a full share

-Are things like maintenance, insurance etc entirely my responsibility or is this split to reflect the share of ownership

-I have checked my credit rating with equifax and am in the excellent range, however I used to be quite bad with credit cards and missed lots of payments over the years. I have no missed payments since 2010, does the excellent score mean the old ones don't matter anymore

-I have no deposit and think it would take about 6 months to save up. Is there any harm in applying for an agreement in principle now, just to see if I would get approved based on the amount I expect to save


any answers or advice would be appreciated

kingstreet

Please clarify what you mean by "share to buy."

There's Nationwide's "save to buy" then affordable housing schemes like rent to buy, shared ownership and shared equity, such as Help To Buy - Equity Loan on newbuilds.

robin1981_2

I can't post the link but share to buy dot com, the government shared ownership scheme.

kingstreet

That link appears to connect to an FCA regulated mortgage and insurance intermediary website, not a Government portal.

Share to Buy started as mortgage brokers focused on shared mortgages in 2004, expanding into a property portal and ‘one stop shop’ in 2010. Share to Buy continues to offer mortgage services focused on the affordable homes sector

Shared ownership schemes are funded by the Homes & Communities Agency via local bodies, such as Registered Social Landlords and Housing Associations. You may also find the HCA's regional Help To Buy Agents will also be involved in the vetting of applicants prior to a property being chosen.

http://www.helptobuy.org.uk/other-housing-options/shared-ownership

In answer to your questions, a shared ownership property is leasehold, so there may be higher legal costs than for a freehold purchase.

Maintenance costs are your responsibility. Buildings insurance will be provided by the freeholder/HA and the cost included in your rent & service charges.

CRA credit scores are meaningless. You need to obtain all three versions of your credit file to see what is visible on them for the last six years. An independent mortgage broker will help you analyse the data to establish if there are any issue which need attention.

I can't see any point in a speculative credit search which will be out of date well before you plan to buy.

robin1981_2

thanks for the info. i'm not sure how it started but it is an official portal for london:

"If you are looking to buy in London, Share to Buy provides the official property portal of First Steps, the Mayor of London's brand for affordable home ownership in the capital. Go to sharetobuy.com/London to check eligibility for First Steps; register/sign-in for the scheme and search for London shared ownership and shared equity properties.

If you are buying in the rest of England, where affordable home ownership schemes are branded as 'Homebuy', use sharetobuy.com to search for shared ownership properties, compare mortgages for part buy part rent, and find details of solicitors specialising in the Homebuy schemes."

I know an agreement in principle would not be valid in six months, but I assume it is a pretty good indicator of whether I am likely to be approved when the time comes (but obviously no guarantee). I wanted to know if there was actually any harm in applying (e.g will it count against me to not go through after getting an agreement in principle), as I really want to move closer to work. If it is unlikely I will get approved when the time comes i'd rather just move now and rent somewhere, if it is likely I would get approved when the time comes I will stay put and save.