What to do if you're struggling to buy your first home

What with interest rate rises, inflation and general economic uncertainly, the prospects of buying your own home may seem slimmer than ever.

Enter shared ownership, which has a two-pronged approach to boosting affordability and provides the same level of security as buying on the open market.

It lets you purchase a share in a property while covering the balance with rent. And as your deposit is based on the cost of the share rather than the full price, it’s a lower sum than it would be on the open market.

Let’s see how these homeowners have done it.

‘I bought with a deposit of just £3,844’

Midwive Sophie MacKenzie, who’s originally from Birmingham, had spent five years in Reading but never dreamed that she’d be able to own a home there until she visited L&Q at Huntley Wharf.

‘I used to drive past on the way to work and had watched it being built, so I was aware that there were new homes coming soon,’ she says.

‘However, I never thought that I would be able to afford one on my single income.’ Noticing an advert for brand-new one and two-bedroom homes on the hoarding, she decided to find out more.

‘I had managed to put away some savings during Covid, and after an initial discussion with the sales team, I realised that I might have enough for a deposit through the shared ownership scheme.’

A down payment of £3,844 was enough to allow her to buy a 25 per cent share of a one-bedroom apartment, and she was impressed with the help she received along the way. ‘I was able to use one of L&Q’s recommended independent financial advisors, Censeo, who were brilliant and supported me throughout the eligibility process,’ she says.

‘I could not believe that I could get onto the property ladder in Reading on my own, just a 12-minute walk from where I work. I bought my home off-plan, and only saw it the week before I moved in in February, but any doubts were instantly eased in my mind – it was beautiful!’

One-bedroom flats at the development start at £71,875 for a 
25 per cent share of £287,500. ‘The development is so peaceful 
and my apartment overlooks the communal gardens, which is nice and quiet for when I need to sleep before night shifts. And coming from a very small one-bedroom rented flat, where I could barely fit my sofa and TV, it was incredible to suddenly have a huge open-plan living space.

‘Over the next five years, my plan is to staircase so that I can own a higher share in my property. But, for the time being, I’m enjoying making my apartment my own.’

‘I could afford to live near to my family’

Like many first-time buyers, 31-year-old Mehreen Faryad saw lockdown as the perfect time to start saving for a deposit. Before March 2020, life kept getting in the way, but by focusing on her goal of moving out of her family home in Mitcham, she was ready to start her property search just 12 months later.

‘I started my home search in April 2021, and reserved a home in Croydon by May. I thought it was well suited to me, but due to unexpected delays I withdrew my reservation and started to look elsewhere,’ explains Mehreen, a financial controller.

‘I started Googling again, trying to find somewhere local to my family that I could afford, when I spotted that Catalyst by Peabody was delivering shared ownership at The Switch Wimbledon.

‘I was so excited to finally see the affordable housing scheme available exactly where I was hoping to buy.’

Once she’d met the sales team and seen the show home, she reserved a one-bedroom apartment, purchasing a 35 per cent share.

‘This was the last remaining home in this phase that had views across London and had a balcony and terrace, and I just knew it was the one for me,’ she says. ‘I decided to put the reservation down on the day and it was the best decision I’ve ever made.’

Mehreen reserved her home at The Switch in November, and by January 2022 was settled in. ‘I found the whole process so smooth,’ she says. ‘The speed amazed me too. Having experienced such delays earlier in the year, I was so pleased to have my mortgage approved in a week, and I completed a week after exchanging.

‘When I look back I feel so lucky that the reservation on the original home, fell through, as the day I visited The Switch I just knew it was the perfect place for me. I feel so happy and comfortable here. Shared ownership has given me the opportunity to finally move out, but stay local to my family, which I never thought I’d be able to afford. Maybe I’ll look into staircasing in the future!’

Two and three-bedroom apartments are left at The Switch, from £141,250 for a 25 per cent share of £565,000.catalyst.homes

‘Shared ownership widened my options’

Harrow resident Siobhan, who’s 31 and a hair technician at Madame Tussauds in central London, was intrigued when she saw that the former Kodak factory, a well-known local landmark, was to be redeveloped as a new residential quarter called Eastman Village.

As homes at the development were available via Hyde New Homes’ shared ownership scheme, it seemed too good an opportunity to miss. After speaking to a specialist mortgage adviser recommended by Hyde, she purchased a 30 per cent share in a one-bedroom, top-floor apartment in a block which was still being built.

‘When I first started looking into buying, I intended to get a standard mortgage,’ says Siobhan. ‘However, there are slim pickings for the amount I would have been able to secure. I discovered other buying options which opened up my scope much wider and when I compared Help to Buy and shared ownership, I saw that the latter was way more affordable for me on a month-to-month basis.

‘I was eligible for both, but shared ownership frees up my earnings and means I have more disposable income at the end of the month.’

Eastman Village had a special significance for Siobhan, too. ‘Grandad worked as one Kodak’s first computer managers, so we always think of him when we go past and it is also thanks to him that I was able to buy my home here as I used an inheritance he left me as a deposit.’

While waiting for the sale to complete, Siobhan felt fully supported. ‘My sales consultant was brilliant. I’d often pop along to the marketing suite for a chat and see how the block was progressing from the outside.

‘She also sent me a buyer’s pack which had useful information on the development and the buying process plus a breakdown of my overall costs per month. I also received a timeline so I could see what would be happening on a week-by-week basis.’

The wait gave her time to plan the interior of her new home, injecting her creative style into it with dark furniture, jewel tones, varied textures and an array of houseplants.

‘People comment that it looks like I’ve lived here for years when it’s only been a couple of months,’ she says. And with her parents just ten minutes’ walk away, Siobhan is pleased with her decision to stay in her local area.

‘It’s filled with happy memories. My grandad is buried in Pinner Cemetery which overlooks Eastman Village and I know he would be very happy that I have ended up living here.’

One, two and three-bedroom apartments at Eastman Village start from £82,500 for a 25 per cent share of £330,000. hydenewhomes.co.uk

‘It’s only £50 more than we were paying in rent’

Becky Boakes, a 29-year-old primary school teacher, and Dave Chandler, 30, who works in music distribution, grew up in Dagenham and always wanted to put down roots close to their family. After renting a small flat in the town, they purchased a 35 per cent share in their own one-bed flat at Merrielands, by Latimer and, together with their house cat Ollie, moved in in March.

‘Dagenham’s a diamond in the rough – there’s a lot to love about it, says Becky. ‘As well as being an affordable London location, there’s plenty of green space around and fantastic transport links with a choice of train stations, which makes commuting and going out a breeze.’

Becky had noticed Merrielands when walking to the station on her commute to work. She researched the development online and after a viewing in August 2021, the couple bought off-plan. They combined their savings to raise the deposit and secure their new home.

‘We’d outgrown our old place, especially with Dave now mainly working from home, and had also grown tired of paying someone else’s mortgage. When we discovered we could afford to buy using shared ownership, we didn’t waste any time,’ she says.

‘With house prices increasing we knew we had to take advantage of the scheme. It was daunting buying a home that we hadn’t physically seen, but we could tell the layout was just what we needed. Dave is very technically minded so he used software to arrange the furniture and get an idea of how the space would be used. And the process itself was swift and easy.’

Breaking free from the unpredictability of renting has been liberating for the couple. ‘It’s so nice to feel stable. With renting, you never know when the rent will increase or if the landlord is going to suddenly decide to sell,’ adds Becky.

‘We’ve got our own investment now and we’re so proud of our new home. . It’s only an extra £50 a month more than we were paying our landlord, but we have a lot more space, feel more secure and couldn’t be happier with the way things have turned out. Even Ollie is happier. He loves prowling around his new space and has a hammock on every window.’

One, two and three-bedroom apartments at Merrielands start from £84,000 for a 35 per cent share of £240,000. latimerhomes.com

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