0333 344 3234
Shared Ownership Solicitors Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire Property Details
| Avg. Property Price in Hertfordshire - 2015: | £376,183 |
| Avg. Property Price in Hertfordshire - 2014: | £345,122 |
| Increase Compared to Last Year | 9% |
| Avg. Rent in Hertfordshire: | £1,249 PCM |
| Avg Monthly Properties For Sale in Hertfordshire: | 5,566 |
| Population of Hertfordshire: | c.1,150,000 |
Shared Ownership Solicitors Hertfordshire
Great value shared ownership specialists providing conveyancing support to anyone looking to buy or sell a shared ownership property in Hertfordshire. Our dedicated team of proactive, experienced and friendly conveyancing solicitors and surveyors are experts in shared ownership. You have all the expertise you need to sell or buy a shared ownership property in just one firm and we work to make the process a smooth and stress free one.
Shared Ownership is a complex process with a need to work with Housing Associations, mortgage lenders and Freeholders and juggling all of these can be a challenge. Our team of shared ownership specialists will help you navigate through the minefield and keep you informed throughout the whole process.
Our policy is always to provide a fixed fee quote for the work your shared ownership solicitor will do for you. This fee will never change as the process continues.unlike so many of our competitors. Our solicitors can also provide other relevant services such as will drafting, shared ownership agreements, advice on landlord disputes and much much more. As before, the quotes we provide for all our services are transparent and fixed fee.
- No Move, No Fee Promise
- Guaranteed Fixed Fee - all wrapped up in one low price
- Working directly with an experienced solicitor
- Same day responses to questions throughout your move
- On all mortgage lender panels Inc HSBC, Santander, Halifax
What is Shared Ownership?
Shared ownership schemes allow lower income earners with smaller deposits to buy a home by sharing the ownership with a housing association. You buy a share of your home, anywhere from 25% to 75% of the full value, and the housing association owns the rest. You pay a monthly rent to the housing association for the amount that they own.![]()
You can fund your share by a deposit and a shared ownership mortgage. So if you are buying a 25% share of a property worth £200,000 (£50,000) with a £5,000 deposit, then you’d need to get a mortgage for the £45,000.
Shared Ownership Solicitors handle the legal work for you; liaising with your mortgage lender and the housing association. The process can take longer than normal conveyancing purchases.
Once you complete your shared ownership purchase you can buy additional shares in your property from the housing association after you have owned the property for a period of time.
Selling a Shared Ownership Property
When you come to sell if you own 100% of your home you can sell it yourself. When you put it up for sale, the housing association has the right to buy the property back first. This is known as ‘first refusal’ and the housing association has this right for 21 years after you fully own the home. If you own a share of your home, the housing association has the right to find a buyer for it. You’ll have to pay for the property to be valued to get the current market rate that’ll be used if the housing association buys back your share.
Be careful the valuation only lasts for 3 months and if you don't complete your shared ownership conveyancing in this time you'll have to confirm if the housing association is happy to proceed; if not they will ask you to pay to get the property revalued at your cost.
Which Housing Associations do we work with?
We work with all of the Housing Associations in Hertfordshire including Aldwyck, North Hertfordshire Homes, Places for People, Hightown Praetorian and Churches, Paddington Churches, Asra, Home Group, Abbeyfield, Anchor, Dimensions, Cherry Tree and many more. Call 0333 344 3234 to speak to one of our Shared Ownership Specialists.
Fixed Fee Shared Ownership Solicitors Hertfordshire
Shared Ownership Solicitors always charge for the additional work required during the shared ownership process. Sadly all to often cheap shared ownership solicitors don't always include their final fee and simply supply a low estimate that isn't fixed.
Our shared ownership solicitors provide a fixed conveyancing fee which includes all of the legal fees in one quote including the bank transfers, mortgage, leasehold, shared ownership and admin fees.
When comparing other non-fixed shared ownership solicitors' quotes make sure that you get an upper limit of what will be charged. All too often cheap conveyancing estimates end up costing £100s more than you budgeted for because an estimate is not a fixed fee.
Our conveyancing solicitors provide a fixed fee quote that includes all of the legal fees you’ll need to pay when buying or selling your home. This means you can budget how much the home move is going to cost you from start to finish.
No Sale No Fee Shared Ownership Solicitors Hertfordshire
The shared ownership conveyancing process has no certainties until you
complete and collect your keys from the housing association. Until this point the
conveyancing could fall through; especially in Hertfordshire's busy shared ownership market.
This is why all of our quotes are a no sale no fee so that you don’t have to pay for your full solicitor’s fee if the conveyancing falls through.
Call us on 0333 344 3234 to find out more about our no sale no fee conveyancing solicitors.
Fast Shared Ownership Solicitors Hertfordshire – Our top tip
Shared ownership conveyancing can be drawn out and clients want fast shared ownership solicitors in Hertfordshire to get their transaction through quickly. Often, the Housing Association may delay matters themselves but if you choose a shared ownership solicitor who has too many caseloads, this delay will be larger.
Given that a property valuation is time-limited to 3 months you must choose shared ownership solicitors knowing that they have the capability to complete all the legal work within that time. Pushing and calling the housing association to make sure you give them and get from them everything you need gives you the strongest chance that your shared ownership conveyancing will be fast. This is a specialised skill and what our shared ownership solicitors are expert at!
Staircasing Shared Ownership in Hertfordshire
After taking up ownership of your home, you can then buy more shares in it. This process is known as 'staircasing'.
What your home's value is at any point and when you want to buy the share will determine the cost of staircasing. Should property prices in your area have gone up, you'll pay more for your second share than you did for the initial one. Similarly, if values have decreased, you'll pay less than you did to start with.
You must pay the Housing Association for the valuation of your property for staircasing. When the result is known, you will find out what buying an extra share will cost.
Stamp duty must be considered when staircasing because you might become liable for it or have to pay an increased amount of it. If you want to know where you stand when staircasing, please call us: it's worth bearing in mind that stamp duty can cost you £1000s.
Shared Ownership Eligibility in Hertfordshire
Not everyone is eligible for shared ownership and Hertfordshire will have its own area-specific criteria.
You can normally use shared ownership to buy a home if:
- you earn £60,000 a year or less as a household
- you’re a first-time buyer (or you used to own a home, but can’t afford to buy one now)
- you rent a council or housing association property
You are also limited to only being allowed to buy leasehold properties. Hertfordshire has a number of housing associations including Aldwyck, North Hertfordshire Homes, Places for People, Hightown Praetorian and Churches, Paddington Churches, Asra, Home Group, Abbeyfield, Anchor, Dimensions, Cherry Tree and many more.
Property Statistics & Council Tax Bands in Hertfordshire (Hertford)
| Council tax band for Hertford, Hertfordshire |
Market value from |
Market value to |
Council tax 2015-6 Hertford, Hertfordshire |
| A | £0 | £40,000 | £1,026.07 |
| B | £40,001 | £52,000 | £1,397.06 |
| C | £52,001 | £68,000 | £1,368.08 |
| D | £68,001 | £88,000 | £1,539.09 |
| E | £88,001 | £120,000 | £1,881.12 |
| F | £120,001 | £160,000 | £2,223.13 |
| G | £160,001 | £320,000 | £2,565.16 |
| H | £320,001 | Over | £3,078.80 |
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0333 344 3234
86-89 Paul Street
Old Street
London
EC2A 4NE
UNITED KINGDOM