Inside Housing – News – Shared ownership needs ‘urgent reform’ amid ‘unbearable’ costs, MPs say

The LUHC Committee echoed these findings on Thursday, writing that rising service charges levied by providers have frequently left owners “regretting having made the purchase in the first place”.

One person who submitted evidence reported that her service charge rose by between 140% and 170% in the two years from moving into the property in August 2021 to submitting her written evidence in August 2023.

The committee also singled out properties delivered as part of the 2016-2023 Affordable Homes Programme, in which shared owners are required to cover 100% of costs for repairs.

MPs said that this, combined with the “numerous and often unnecessarily expensive charges involved in the process of staircase, makes it very difficult for many shared owners to complete their objective of staircase to 100% and achieving their aspiration of full homeownership”.

The report said the government and Homes England should create a single source of independent and impartial advice for shared owners, because of the complex nature of some shared ownership leases.

Clive Betts, chair of the LUHC Committee, said that for many people it becomes “an unbearable reality, where a blizzard of charges and an unfair burden for maintenance and repair costs means that they are unable to afford full homeownership”.

“Rising rents, hefty service charges, complex leases, disproportionate repairs and maintenance costs are experienced by too many people who take the shared ownership route. The government needs to take clear and urgent action to tackle these issues and ensure shared ownership genuinely delivers affordable homeownership.”

A Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) spokesperson said: “Shared ownership has a vital role to play in helping people onto the property ladder, and since 2010 we have delivered 156,800 new shared ownership homes.

“We are taking action to ensure that the scheme provides best value for shared owners, including proposals in the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Bill to give the right to extend their leases by 990 years.”