Open Market Shared Equity Scheme: buyer information leaflet

What responsibilities does a shared equity owner have?

When you buy through the Open Market Shared Equity Scheme you own the property outright – you will have full title to the property.

Like other home owners you will be responsible for all maintenance, insurance and repair costs, as well as making your mortgage repayments and paying Council tax to your local authority. You are responsible for keeping your property in a good state of repair. Before buying a property, you should therefore look closely at the Home Report which should be made available by the seller and ensure that you are comfortable that you can afford to pay for any repair which the Home Report survey indicates are needed. If the property has common and shared areas, flats for example, you will be responsible for paying any common maintenance or service charges. We advise you to check with your solicitor to ascertain how much these additional costs are before you proceed with buying a property.

You will need to take costs of this nature into account when assessing whether you can afford to buy a property and should therefore seek more detailed independent financial and legal advice on the responsibilities that come with being a home owner in relation to any particular property you select and all documentation which you will require to enter into.

Your home should be your sole residence and permission to let your home will not be given. If you let your home or do not reside there as your sole residence then this will be a breach of the shared equity agreement and enforcement action could be taken.