Whether you are a Shared Owner, Leaseholder or Freeholder, we’ve got all the information you need. Details of being an owner or shared owner with Stonewater should have been explained to you when you bought your home, but here are some key points on the requirements on owning or part owning your home.
What level of ownership am I?
Am I a Freeholder?
If you don’t hold a written tenancy / lease agreement with us for a fixed or cyclical period you’re a freeholder. You’ll own your home and any land outlined in your deed but may also have an obligation with us to pay certain costs such as contributions to estate services. These obligations will be contained within your property ‘transfer document’. Your agreement with us is an important document – please read it thoroughly.
Am I a Leaseholder?
If you hold an agreement which entitles you to exclusive possession of your property for a fixed period of time, such as 99 or 125 years, then you are a leaseholder. A lease is a legal contract which sets out the legal relationship between you, the leaseholder, and the landlord (Stonewater).
Your lease will contain information on your obligations and requirements and depending on the nature of your lease, these requirements may vary.
Am I a Shared Owner?
If you purchased a percentage share in your home when you bought it, you are a Shared Owner. You do not own all of the shares in the property but your lease entitles you to live in your homes as a home owner with all the associated right and responsibilities.
Your lease outlines your responsibilities for repairs, as well as details of any rent and service charges
What Homeownership and Shared Ownership means for you?
As a Homeowner or Shared Owner, you have the freedom to enjoy your home. However, there are a few things you need to consider. Our Homeownership handbook covers everything you need to know if you own or part own a home with us.
Hot topics – What do I do if I want to...
Sell my home
How you sell your home, all depends on the type of ownership and agreement you have with us. Take a look below to see which route applies to you, whichever way, we’ve got you covered.
Shared Owners
- Let us know as soon as you decide to sell and we will let you know the next steps and what your options are for selling
- Most leases give us a nomination period to find you a buyer, after this period, if no buyer is found you have the option to advertise with an estate agent
- We will advertise your home on our website and Help to Buy
- Your home must sell for the market value as agreed by a RICS qualified surveyor
- We will need to assess any potential buyers for affordability and eligibility
- Certain Local Authorities require a local connection – we will be able to advise if this affects you
- You are responsible for all costs associated with the sale, to us, your solicitor and any appointed estate agent
Leaseholders and freeholders
- Let us know of your intention to sell once you’ve placed your property with an estate agent. If you do not do this, this may cause delays in the transaction.
- Your solicitor will contact us with a questionnaire about the building or estate and any charges levied. We’ll charge you a fee for providing this information. We may also need to sign and agree a deed of transfer.
- If you own 100% of the equity, there will not normally be any restriction on who you can sell your property to, or the price that you put the property on the market for.
- If you have recently bought or acquired the property through the Right to Buy or Acquire scheme you may have to repay some of the discount agreed if you sell within the statutory repayment period.
For further information on selling your home, please contact our dedicated Sales and Services Team who will be happy to help. Further information can also be found in our Homeownership handbook
Improve or alter my home
We want you to enjoy your home and have the freedom to make it your own. In certain circumstances, we need to know what you plan to do with your home.
You’re responsible for the internal decoration of your home and you do not need our permission to carry out minor improvements. If you do wish make major improvement, such as adding a conservatory or replacing the windows you need to contact us.
Before you make any improvement or alteration you must advise us in writing and provide details of the works. You may need our permission to carry out the works dependent on clauses contained within your lease or in your transfer document.
- You may also need planning permission and must comply with relevant Building Regulations – which must be obtained prior to request for our consent.
- In most instances, we’ll approve your request and will only withhold permission if we have a good reason.
- In most cases we’ll charge a fee for this permission.
This list is not exhaustive and for full details, please visit our Homeownership handbook. You need to contact us before making any major improvements, alterations or adaptations to your home.
Buy more of my home
Please contact us if you would like to purchase further shares in your property.
- This process is known as ‘Staircasing’. Your lease will give you more information and usually you’ll be able to buy 100% of your home. If you’re unsure about the maximum shares you can purchase in your home please refer to your lease or contact us.
- If you staircase to 100% you will no longer have to pay us rent. If you increase your share to less than 100% your rent will go down in proportion to the share you buy and you’ll pay less rent each time you staircase further.
- You’ll need to estimate the value of your home, which an estate agent can help with, and speak with your lender to see what extra shares you may be able to buy.
- You will be required to obtain a RICS valuation report if you proceed with staircasing.
- You are responsible for all costs associated with staircasing, including the valuation fee, your solicitor fees, our administration fee and any mortgage fees, alongside the cost of the shares themselves.
- If you become an outright owner of your home, you’ll no longer pay rent but may still need to pay ground rent and service charges.
For further information on whether staircasing is an option for you, please contact us us or for more information, please download a copy of our Homeownership handbook.
What else do I need to know?
Alongside the Hot Topics, here are some other things you need to consider as a Homeowner or Shared Owner.
- Paying your Rent – What you are required to pay and how and when this may change
- Repairs and Maintenance to your home – Your obligations and responsibilities
- Re-mortgaging and/or further borrowing – You may wish to change lender or switch to a better rate
- Transferring your lease – Adding or removing a party to your lease/agreement
- Insuring your home – What you need to make sure you have covered
- Subletting of your home – Requesting to let your home for a specified period
- Fees payable – Our fees for handling transactions on your behalf
- Major Works – How these may impact you and your contribution
- Service Charges and Reserve Funds – What you pay for and how and when this may change
- Extending your lease – Your rights and what it involves
Further information on all of the above is contained in the Homeownership handbook
You can also contact our dedicated Sales and Services Team who will be happy to help by either emailing homeowner@stonewater.org or contacting the team on 023 8065 8858 (option 2). Alternatively, if you are registered with MyHome you can contact us through there.
If you are not registered and would like to interact with us digitally please click here.