94% of First Time Buyers missing out on Shared Ownership

Is Shared Ownership The Future for First-Time Buyers?

• Revealed: 18-24 year olds clueless about how Shared Ownership works with only 28% knowing what it is.
• Only 19% of property buyers in the last ten years have used a Government buying scheme to secure their property, with a smaller 6% having used the Government’s Shared Ownership scheme.
• Surprising survey results from TotallyMoney survey reveal that 80% of first-time buyers who purchased through the Government’s Shared Ownership scheme didn’t know what “leasehold” meant.

Being a homeowner has never been an easy feat. In fact, in recent years it has been increasingly difficult to get your foot on the property ladder. According to the Office of National Statistics, the average cost of purchasing an entry-level property has increased by nearly 20% across England and Wales in the last decade, reaching £140,000. [1] With prices on the rise, the introduction of Government schemes, including the Shared Ownership scheme, are intended to give new buyers a better opportunity to be homeowners. However, with many still unclear on what these schemes mean and how they can help, are they being used to their full potential?

Recent research by credit experts TotallyMoney has shown that not only do many people not know how the Shared Ownership scheme works; many of those the scheme is meant to help don’t even know what it is. On an even more worrying note, the number of those who are confused about how the scheme works includes some of those currently using the scheme.

Financial Fears

Amongst those surveyed, the results revealed that the British public’s lack of knowledge on the Shared Ownership scheme is deterring them from using it to their benefit. While 40% of first-time property buyers surveyed admitted they needed financial support from family and friends to buy, even with a mortgage, only 19% had utilised a government-backed scheme, and only 6% had taken advantage of Shared Ownership.

In addition, once presented with the correct definition of the Shared Ownership scheme, 38% of first-time buyers would still not consider buying through the Shared Ownership scheme. When questioned as to why this was the case, 35% stated that fear over hidden additional fees would deter them from utilising the scheme.

What’s The Shared Ownership Solution?

With ignorance about government schemes, particularly the Shared Ownership scheme, rendering them of little use to the British public, TotallyMoney has created a simple roadmap to simplify the scheme. The credit experts’ in-depth guide and infographic help to navigate the journey to becoming a homeowner; from how much a Shared Ownership scheme truly costs, to how you can go from owning a share to 100% ownership through a process called “Staircasing”.

The in-depth article dives deep into the facts and figures of the Government scheme, explaining in detail how the Shared Ownership scheme affects the future of purchasing property, why the scheme exists and how buying through the scheme directly affects buyers.

A representative from TotallyMoney commented: “With entering the property ladder becoming increasingly difficult, and with this step being so important to many, it’s important to clear the smoke that exists around the schemes existing for first time buyers today in order to help them make the best financial decision. Though many do not have a rounded understanding of what the Government Shared Ownership Scheme is, for those that do understand it can be a useful tool to become a homeowner. We have conducted this research and created this guide to open up understanding on Shared Ownership for those looking to buy so that they too can take advantage of it.”

The full infographic, including survey statistics and top tips for utilising Shared Ownership, can be viewed here. Or for a more detailed dive into the scheme, the in-depth article can be explored here.