Buy a home

Shared Ownership enables you to buy in stages that you can afford – you buy a share in your home and pay a rent on the remainder to us. You can normally buy between 25% to 75% to start with and you usually have the option to buy more shares over time, until you own all the property, if you wish.  

As part of the criteria to qualify for Shared Ownership your total household income must be under £80,000. The scheme is usually aimed at first time buyers looking to take their first step on the property ladder. If you already own a property, you will need to sell it and show that you cannot afford to buy a home outright. 

If you would like to find out if you may be eligible, complete our useful criteria form found by clicking here.

If you have answered yes to all of the questions in our Shared Ownership Criteria Form, and would like to check you are eligible for Shared Ownership, contact our Sales Team on newbuildsales@saffronhousing.co.uk or call 01508 532000. 

You will need to have a financial assessment once you have spoken with a member of our team.  

This policy applies to every allocation of a shared ownership home to a prospective customer and is intended to be a supplemental addition to section 4 - ‘Customer Priority’ of Saffron’s adopted Shared Ownership Allocations Policy dated March 2022.

We will ensure all prospective customers are aware of our policy approach when offering them a shared ownership home

We will ensure all prospective customers are aware of the process prior to expending any cost to themselves

POLICY STATEMENT

Where the demand for our shared ownership homes outstrips the supply, it is imperative that we are clear in how we allocate and offer our shared ownership homes to prospective eligible customers.

In line with regulative guidance set out in Homes England’s Capital Funding Guide, Saffron must be open in offering our shared ownership homes on a first come, first served basis.

Saffron will operate the first come first served policy based on the date a prospective purchaser initial interest in the development was registered. This includes notification by email, telephone or in person to either Saffron directly or to our appointed sales agents for that specific scheme.

Exceptions:

Exceptions to this First Come First Served policy are set out in Homes England’s Capital Funding Guide. These exceptions are as follows:

• Applications from serving military personnel and former members of the British Armed Forces discharged in the last two years
• Where properties are situated in National Parks, Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty and rural exception sites as we will need to allocate these homes in line with set geographical criteria

Ministry of Defence personnel will be prioritised for Shared Ownership schemes where:

• They have completed their basic (phase 1) training and they are one of the following:
• Regular service personnel (including Navy, Army and Air Force)
• Clinical staff (with the exception of doctors and dentists)
• Ministry of Defence Police Officers
• Uniformed staff in the Defence Fire Service
• They are ex-regular service personnel who have served in the Armed Forces for a minimum of six years, and can produce a Discharge Certificate (or similar documentation) as proof, where they apply within two years (24 months) of the date of discharge from service or
• They are the surviving partners of regular service personnel who have died in service, where they apply within two years (24 months) of the date of being bereaved. Read about surviving partners in the MOD surviving partners guidance.