SHARED OWNERSHIP HOUSING AT HUTTON CRANSWICK

Would-be homeowners in the East Riding of Yorkshire are being invited to find out more about shared ownership homes for sale in the sought-after rural village of Hutton Cranswick. Together Housing Group is due to complete work on 10 homes in the village of in March and potential buyers are invited to come along to a drop-in session on 13 February between 3pm and 6pm at WI Hall on Main Street to find out more.

Two two-bedroom bungalows and two three-bedroom semi-detached properties will be available for shared ownership through Together Homes, with the remaining six homes being offered at affordable rent.

The cost of an average home in East Riding is over seven times the average income and according to the National Housing Federation¹, the average worker in the area would need a 67% pay rise to be able to afford to buy a home outright.

With home ownership significantly out of reach for many households, the rental market offers an increasingly popular alternative but with the mean monthly private sector rent in East Riding at £534, this is also becoming increasingly unaffordable. Shared ownership offers the best of both worlds, allowing those who wouldn’t otherwise be able to afford to buy on the open market the chance to part-buy and part-rent.

You can buy a share in one of these properties from as little as 25% of the full property value and buy more shares as and when you can afford to. Not only should you pay less with a combined mortgage and rent than you would buying on the open market but you only need 5% of the deposit relative to the share you are buying rather than 5% of the full asking price like Shared Ownership’s sister scheme, Help to Buy. Can this be worded so that the sentences are shorter and easier to understand?

Claire McCourt, Sales Manager for Together Homes, said: “There is a misconception that shared ownership is only for young first-time buyers but actually there are a lot of older people who have had a change in circumstance who would benefit from the option of being able to buy a share of a house. You may be retired and looking to downsize but don’t have enough equity to buy a bungalow outright and can’t secure a mortgage if you’re no longer earning. The option of being able to buy a share of a home enables you to pay cash for the chunk you are buying and subsidised rent on the rest.

"Meanwhile the three-bedroom semi-detached properties would be perfect for  first time buyers, small families or even single-parent families who may have lost equity in a divorce and can’t secure a mortgage on the full value of a property with a sole income.”

Initially households who live in the village or who have a strong local connection to the village will be given preferential treatment when the homes are released for sale. Similarly the rented units will be subject to a local lettings policy which will also give local applicants priority.

Cllr Symon Fraser, Portfolio Holder for Strategic Asset Management, Housing and Environment, added: “Shared Ownership is an excellent way to help people who otherwise would be unable to afford to buy their own home.”

Just three miles from Driffield and eight miles from the historic market town of Beverley, the development is also ideally placed for easy access to Bridlington and Hull.

To register your interest in the homes, which are due for completion in summer 2019, email hello@mytogetherhome.co.uk or call 0845 077 0027. For more information about shared ownership, visit www.mytogetherhome.co.uk