Welcome to our DIYSO hub. The place to find out more about your options around staircasing or moving in to full ownership. If you are looking to talk to someone in person, fill out the form below and someone will call you at the earliest convenience.
What Are My Options?
As a DIYSO (Do It Yourself Shared Ownership) leaseholder, you have owned and lived in your home for a number of years. Since purchasing your share in your home your circumstances may have changed, and owning your home with shared ownership may not be the best value option for you long-term.
We’ve set out all the choices you can make with your home.
Each time that you staircase there will be additional fees associated with the process such as valuation, solicitor and mortgage-related costs that you will need to consider. These fees vary, so you will be advised of the exact costs by your solicitor and mortgage lender.
You are able to buy up to the full 100% ownership of your home, and you can staircase as many times as you like to reach 100%. Once you reach 100% ownership you will no longer be required to abide by shared ownership lease restrictions which means you can rent out your home for profit, buy another property without selling your shared ownership home.
You can choose to sell your home at any time at whatever share you own. Over time you may find that as well as having built up equity, that the property value has increased. You will benefit from any increase in the value of the property on the share you own, and could even make a profit on the share you currently own if you choose to sell your home.
You are not obligated to do anything and will be able to continue living in your home paying rent on the unowned share as you currently do.
However over the years that you have owned your home, the number of years left on your lease will have decreased.
Once you have fewer than 80 years remaining on your lease the cost of lease extension can increase due to an additional charge called ‘marriage value’.
Consequently, your home may decline in value over time. We recommend that you check your lease and understand what this means for you.
Does Staircasing Work For You?
The below calculator can give you an idea of how staircasing might work for you. Input your current ownership situation, and your desired ownership level, then the calculator will show an idea of how your finances could work.
The calculator does not take into account any incentive offered through our DIYSO program so be sure to talk through all your options with our team member when you are ready.
Disclaimer
- This staircasing calculator cannot be used as a guarantee of obtaining a mortgage.
- It is advised that you speak to an independent mortgage adviser to find out more on your affordability.
- Estimated monthly rent is calculated on the remaining share of the property.
- Please note that your regular service charge will remain payable.
- Share value calculations are only to be used as estimates. Final valuation figures will be determined by your RICS valuation report.
Talk To Us
Our sales team will be in contact with you over the coming weeks however, if you want to talk to our team more quickly, or update your contact details, you can fill out the form here and we will contact you within a few days.
Staircasing Hub
Below are some of the most frequently asked questions around our staircasing process. you can also check out our Staircasing hub here - as DIYSO customers some of the information in the hub will be slightly different, our team will be able to talk you through your specific process.
Staircasing FAQS
Some of our most frequently asked questions around staircasing and what it means for you.
The time people take to buy more shares varies from around four weeks up to three months.
You need to consider the following:
- How soon can the valuer value your property? (If they are busy, it could take two to three weeks for them to value and write the report on your home)
- How busy your solicitor is and if they are experienced with ‘staircasing’ purchases
- Your valuation will only be valid for a short time as set out in your lease. This is normally three months from the date of the report. If you have not completed buying the share by this time, you will have to get an updated valuation. We cannot extend your original valuation under any
circumstances - Delays in completing the purchase are normally due to problems arranging the finance or gathering legal documents – three months is plenty of time but make sure you send us the valuation and staircasing instruction form straight away
- If you need to amend the share that you have initially told us you want to buy, and we have already instructed our solicitors, this will cause a delay that may result in you having to update your valuation. It will take us up to 5 working days to process this request to change the share that you will be buying and provide the updated memorandum and the new instruction to our solicitor
Your solicitor would have given you a copy of your lease when you purchased your share. If you do not have this, you can obtain a copy for the Land Registry website for a small fee. Notting Hill Genesis do not have a copy of your lease.
The cost of your shares will be calculated on the current market value.
The amount you can buy will be determined by the finances available to you. You can buy shares in lots of 5% with a minimum share of 10%. E.g. 10%, 15%, 20%, 25%, etc. You cannot buy a share that is not a multiple of 5%.
Your staircasing will usually take 1-3 months; however, this is just an estimate.
Three months is usually plenty of time to complete but be sure to send us the instruction documents as soon as your valuation is received. This will maximise your chances of completing within the 3 months Delays in completing the purchase are normally due to problems arranging the finance. Any amendments to the initial staircasing instruction that you send will also increase the chance of needing an updated valuation.
Once you have bought extra shares your rent will go down in proportion to the share you have bought. For example, if you increase your share from 50% to 75%, your rent will halve (you will pay rent on 25% of the property rather than 50%).
If you increase your share to 100%, you will stop paying rent. However, you will still have to pay the service charge and ground rent may become payable. Please ask your solicitor about this.
We are unable to provide advice relating to stamp duty. Please ask your solicitor about this.
REVISION NEEDED
- Your valuer’s fee
- Mortgage arrangement fees to your lender, if this applies
- Your lender’s valuation fee, if this applies
- Your legal fees
- The cost of the extra share
- If you did not pay stamp duty on the full value of your home, you may need to pay extra stamp duty. We cannot help with questions about stamp duty. Your solicitor will answer these for you.
NHG pays our own solicitors' fees, unless extra fees are incurred during the staircasing process.
In the case that you cancel your application, or do not complete for any reason, you'll be required to pay our solicitors' fees and/or cancellation fees.