The data from property portal, Share to Buy, highlights that, with single people requiring an average of £74,402 to secure a mortgage on the open market, it is no surprise that solo buyers plan to take advantage of Shared Ownership. With average deposits for a one-bedroom London apartment on the Share to Buy portal currently sitting at £8,652, 77% of those surveyed admitted that they did not think they could currently afford to buy a property on the open market, without the help of alternative homeownership schemes.
As a government-backed scheme, Shared Ownership enables buyers to purchase a share in a home, paying a mortgage on the part they own and a subsided rent on the rest. As the buyer only needs a mortgage on the share that they are purchasing, the amount of money required for a deposit is often substantially lower when compared to buying a private sale home.
As the property market faces another year of economic uncertainty, buyers continue to be impacted by increasing interest rates and cost of living. 71% of participants surveyed said that the cost of living crisis has reduced the amount of money they are able to save for a deposit each month, but, with the help of Shared Ownership, they remain undeterred - 60% of prospective purchasers say they still expect to be able to buy a property within the next 12 months. Allowing hopeful homeowners to take a step on the property ladder at a much more affordable level, 76% of respondents confirmed they have not received any money from parents or family members to put towards their deposit.
Nick Lieb, Head of Operations at Share to Buy, comments: “It's no secret that this is a difficult time for those looking to buy a home, with interest rates skyrocketing, and the cost of living crisis impacting how much money people can realistically save each month.
"The results of our survey are clear – affordable homeownership options, such as Shared Ownership, are now completely critical, allowing thousands of first-time buyers to purchase a property in a climate where they otherwise wouldn't have been able to. It is unmistakable that demand is still strong – 60% of our surveyed users plan to buy in 2023, and with the help of Shared Ownership they aren't as restricted by sky-high deposits and ever-changing mortgage rates. The fact that the majority of hopeful Shared Ownership buyers are purchasing on their own is a testament to how significant the support of this scheme really is.”
