Shared Ownership: fees and costs
When thinking about buying a Shared Ownership home, it’s important to understand the costs involved in the purchase of the property, the costs you will need to pay after you move in, and the costs involved if you decide to sell. Some costs you will pay every month and others are just one-off costs before you move in. It’s important for you to understand them all and this page tells you more.
When fees are charged
Some fees are paid to Homes Plus (the housing association that owns the remaining share of the property) for administrative work it’s required to carry out under the terms of your lease, such as approving a sale, providing legal information, or granting permissions. All administration charges are intended to be reasonable and reflect the cost of the work involved.
Other costs, such as legal fees, mortgage fees, and valuation fees, are payable to independent third parties.
A full list of administration fees is provided below, along with the typical costs you may incur when buying, owning, or selling a Shared Ownership home.
Selling
If you decide to sell your Shared Ownership home, we will have a certain length of time in which to find a buyer. This is called the nomination period. The fees you pay will depend on whether we market the property and find a buyer during this period, or whether you sell your home though an estate agent – which you can do after the nomination period has ended or if we have waived our nomination rights. This is explained further in the How much does selling my Shared Ownership home cost? section below.
When buying a Shared Ownership home with Severn Homes, there will be some costs payable to the housing association, Homes Plus, who own the remaining share of the property.
| Description | Cost | When you pay |
| Reservation fee | £250 | When reserving a property |
| Notice of Transfer | £60 | On completion |
| Notice of Charge | £60 | On completion (if you have a mortgage) |
| Deed of Covenant | £60 | On completion (if required by the lease) |
| Certificate of Compliance | £60 | On completion
(if required by the lease or title restrictions) |
There will also be some costs payable to third parties.
| Description | Estimated cost |
| Mortgage arrangement fee | £0 – £999 |
| Mortgage broker fee | £0 – £500 |
| Your solicitor’s legal fees | £850 – £1,500 |
| Search fees | £250 – £350 |
| Survey / mortgage valuation | £250 – £500 |
| Stamp Duty Land Tax | Depends on purchase price and your circumstances |
| Removal costs | £300 – £800 |
Keep reading to learn more about the costs involved in buying a Shared Ownership property.
Reservation fee
Before you can purchase a Shared Ownership home, you’ll need to pay a reservation fee. This reserves the home you want for you for a set period. This is £250 and, if your sale goes through successfully, this will be taken off the final amount you pay on the day you buy the home (‘completion day’).
However, if you decide not to buy the home after the cooling off period, you may not get the fee back. If you decide not to buy the home during the cooling off period, the reservation fee will be refunded in full.
Mortgage broker fees
Most mortgage brokers will charge a fee for their services.
Solicitor fees
When purchasing a home, there is a significant amount of legal work involved. To complete this work, you will need to hire a licensed conveyancer or solicitor. The amount this will cost will depend on the location and value of the property you are buying.
Deposit
You’ll need to pay a deposit of 5% or more. It’s only on the value of your share of your home, so it is much less than if you buy a home the usual way.
Stamp duty
Whether you pay stamp duty depends on the purchase price and your circumstances. Your solicitor will be able to tell you what your options are.
Removal costs
Don’t forget to account for the cost of hiring a removals team to help you move any furniture and belongings you may have.
Like everyone who owns or rents a home, Shared Ownership homeowners pay a set of monthly costs. Find out more about these costs here – and just ask if there’s anything you don’t understand.
Mortgage repayments
This is to repay the money you borrow for the share you buy. Each month, you’ll make a mortgage repayment to your lender until this is fully paid off.
Rent payments
For the share of your home that you don’t own, you will pay rent to Homes Plus.
Service charge
This is paid to Homes Plus and goes towards the costs of looking after communal areas of your building, maintenance, repairs, and usually buildings insurance too.
Estate management charge
For some homes, you’ll need to pay an estate management charge. This is to cover the cost of maintaining any communal areas that are not covered by the service charge, such as roads. If applicable, this is paid to Homes Plus.
You can sell your Shared Ownership home whenever you are ready to move on.
We will have a certain length of time in which to find a buyer. This length of time is called the nomination period.
If we don’t sell your home within the nomination period, you can choose to sell it on the open market with an estate agent of your choice.
If we market your property and find a buyer during the nomination period, the following fees will apply:
| Description | Fee |
| RICS valuation | £240 |
| Marketing and advertising fee (payable upfront) | £300 |
| Seller’s information and management pack | £150 |
| Resale administration fee (payable on completion) | 1% of the share value sold |
| Homes Plus legal fees | £600 |
If we don’t sell your home within the nomination period or we choose to waive our nomination rights, you can choose to sell through an estate agent of your choice. In this case, you will not be charged a marketing fee or resale administration fee. However, the following fees may still apply:
| Description | Fee |
| RICS valuation | £240 |
| Seller’s information and management pack | £150 |
| Shared Ownership eligibility and affordability assessment | £30 |
| Notice of Transfer | £60 |
| Notice of Charge | £60 |
| Deed of Covenant | £60 |
| Certificate of Compliance | £60 |
| Homes Plus legal fees | £600 (estimate) |
You will also be responsible for your own solicitor’s fees, estate agent fees, and any other costs associated with your sale.
Keep reading to learn more about the costs involved in selling a Shared Ownership property.
RICS valuation
The sale price of your home will be based on a valuation by a surveyor who is registered with the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS). The cost of this is £240.
Marketing and advertising fee
The marketing fee is a non-refundable fee of £300, which covers the cost of us trying to sell your property. This is payable upfront to Homes Plus.
Seller’s information and management pack
The seller’s information and management pack gives answers to standard questions that come up during a sale. The cost of this is £150.
Resale administration fee
This is 1% of the share value sold. You only pay this if we find you a buyer and the sale goes through.
Legal fees
You will need to pay Homes Plus’ legal fees, which are around £600.
Administration fees are charges for specific services provided in relation to your leasehold or Shared Ownership property. You may need to pay administration fees if you make any changes to your home, your mortgage, or your lease. They’re separate from any service charge or rent you pay and we can’t proceed with your request until the relevant fee has been paid.
All administration charges reflect the cost of the work involved. A full list of administration fees is provided below.
General charges
| Pre-sale enquiry pack | £150 |
| Pre-sale enquiry pack (updated information within 6 months) | £65 |
| Home improvements / alterations – basic | £30 |
| Home improvements / alterations – complex | £100 |
| Retrospective consent | £250 |
| Lease extension administration fee | £250 |
| Lease extension valuation fee | £1,020 |
| Copy of digital lease/title (if held in-house) | Free |
| Copy of digital lease/title (Land Registry) | £10 |
Leasehold fees
| Notice of Transfer | £60 |
| Notice of Charge | £60 |
| Certificate of Compliance | £60 |
| Deed of Covenant | £60 |
| Re-mortgage enquiries | £60 |
| Notice of sub-letting* | £50 |
Shared Ownership fees
| Approval of re-mortgage | £60 |
| Approval of re-mortgage and further advance | £100 |
| Resale upfront fee | £300 |
| Shared Ownership valuation (resale and staircasing) | £240 |
| Resale completion fee | 1% of the share value sold |
| Approval of transfer of ownership | £45 |
| Staircasing administration fee | £60 |
| Eligibility assessment fee | £30 |
| Additional enquiries | £90 |
* Sub-letting is not always permitted for Shared Ownership. If sub-letting is important to you, we advise that you ask about this before proceeding with any purchase.
You may also be required to pay legal and valuation costs where applicable.