The majority of prospective shared ownership buyers are planning to purchase a home on their own, a new survey from property portal Share to Buy has revealed.
In the survey of over 2,600 users on sharetobuy.com, 57% of respondents confirmed that they are looking to buy a property solo, without the support of a partner, friend or family member.
This unusual data significantly bucks the UK trend, with national statistics recently reporting that couples – both with and without dependent children – are the most common household type amongst homeowners in 2022, making up 59% of all mortgagors.
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 deposit levels in 2023 – with the average deposit 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, said: “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 testament to how significant the support of this scheme really is.”
