Low Cost Home Ownership
If you want to get your foot on the housing ladder but can’t afford to buy a home of your own, there are a range of options which the Borough of Poole and our Housing Association Partners can offer. This leaflet explains them in detail. In order to be considered for any of the following, you need to have joined our housing register and either indicated on your form your interest in such schemes, or, registered with South West Homes. 
Please note that in order to be considered for most Low Cost Home Ownership opportunities in Poole, you need to currently live or work in Poole.
South West Homes
South West Homes is a service provided by Westcountry Housing & Sovereign Housing Group and has been awarded ‘HomeBuy Agent’ status by the Government to help people in Dorset, Salisbury and South Somerset access low cost home ownership schemes within those areas.
As HomeBuy Agent they will act as your first point of contact for information, advice and access to affordable home ownership.
To Register with South West Homes please complete an application form which can be obtained from South West Homes by contacting:
South West Homes
Phone: 0300 100 0021
Email: mailto:info@southwesthomes.co.uk
Web: www.southwesthomes.org.uk
New Build Home Buy Scheme
New Build HomeBuy (previously known as Shared Ownership) is a Part Buy/Part Rent scheme. It enables you to buy a share that you can afford in a new home, usually around 50% but there are sometimes opportunities to purchase smaller or larger shares. (25 or 75%). A discounted rent is paid to the landlord on the remaining share. Usually, you are able to purchase further shares at a later date enabling you to own 100% of your home if you wish.
These homes are built by Housing Associations or other developers who are working in partnership with the Local Authority and other agencies to provide homes at low cost.
Please see South West Homes website for details of homes available now and coming up soon.
The cost of the mortgage for the share purchased plus the rent for the remainder should be more affordable than the cost of purchasing 100% of the same property in the majority of cases.
Resales
It is also possible to buy a resale of a HomeBuy property. This is when the current owner wishes to sell their property.
HomeBuy Direct
Available to first-time buyers only and will allow up to 30% equity loan to be used to buy a 'new build' property. No charge on the equity loan for first 5 years, charges will apply in 6th year onwards.
Eligiblity will be the same as other HomeBuy products - applicants earning less that £60k. Applicants that have had a relationship breakdown or families that are overcrowded who are exisiting homeowners will also be eligible.
The difference will be for the developers. It is now open to any developer to apply for funding of this scheme on their sites.
Applicants will be able to staircase up to achieve full ownership.
Who is Eligible for Low Cost Home Ownership?
As a general rule all applicants for LCHO in Poole must live or work (over 26hrs) in the Borough. There may be some exceptions where the applicant has been awarded priority or reasonable preference on the housing register. Each case will be assessed individually.
Applicants can purchase a property that is not more than one bedroom size larger than their housing need.
Any applicant on South West Homes register will have any available properties they are eligible for marketed directly to them.
How are applicants prioritised?
Applicants will be prioritised in the following way:
Priority 1 – Council or Housing Association tenants with no rent arrears and Homeless Applicants we have a duty
Priority 2 – Applicants who are threatened with homelessness
Priority 3 – Housing Register applicants whose family composition (housing need) matches the size of property eg. 2 adults, 1 daughter = 2 bed
Priority 4 – Housing Register applicants for whom the property in one bedroom size larger than their need
Within each priority group applicants will be in date order of the date they joined the housing register.
Affordability & Sustainability of Low Cost Home Ownership
The first step in considering whether Low Cost Home Ownership is an option for you is to consider how much your income will support in terms of borrowing on a mortgage. As a very general guideline it is standard to times your household income by 3 ½ to see what the maximum amount is that you might be able to borrow. If you are able to put down a deposit, you may be able to reduce the amount of mortgage needed.
For New Build HomeBuy your household income will need to be sufficient to cover the monthly rent as well as the monthly mortgage repayments. So, for example, if you are purchasing a 50% share of a 1 bed flat at £52,500 and the monthly rent is £150 (this is an estimate only) then you will need an annual income of £15,000 to raise a mortgage for the share you are purchasing plus £1800 to cover the annual cost of renting (12 X £150). This means that your total annual income will need to be at least approx. £16,800.
Please note that this is a guide for information purposes only. These figures do not take account of any other financial commitments you may have such as loans, child maintenance etc. Also these figures are based on a single earned income. The amount you can borrow may be different if your household income is based on two or more people having salaries.
Other important costs to consider – Transaction Costs
There are costs involved with the actual process of purchasing a property. It is therefore essential that you consider whether you can afford transaction costs, which could be as much as £2,500 (more if Land Registry charges apply to the property you are purchasing) which will include legal fee’s, surveys, arrangement fees etc..
Sustainability
As well as considering your Borrowing capacity and Affordability, it is important to consider the longer term sustainability of your home ownership. As well as keeping up to date on your monthly mortgage payments and rental payments to the Housing Association (if applicable), the following costs need to be considered;
- Service Charges
- Insurance
- Maintenance
It is also vital that you consider whether any changes in mortgage interest rates would adversely affect your ability to sustain your mortgage. An independent financial adviser will be able to help you with this.
IT WILL BE IMPORTANT FOR YOU SEEK APPROPRIATE PROFFESIONAL ADVICE FROM A FINANCIAL ADVISOR AS THIS INFORMATION IS ONLY PROVIDED AS A GUIDE
What happens now that I have applied for homebuy?
Once you have registered on the Borough of Poole Housing Register and with South West Homes, as long as you fulfil basic eligibility criteria (living or working in Poole in most cases, with a reasonable income and/or savings) your details will be passed to the various Housing Associations in the Borough who will market their available HomeBuy properties directly to you.
Armed Forces Home Ownership Scheme (pilot) Buyers Guide
The Armed Forces Home Ownership Scheme is an affordable housing product, managed and delivered by the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA), working in partnership with funding from the Ministry of Defence. It is a pilot scheme designed to specifically to provide assistance for regular serving members of the British Armed Forces, who can meet certain eligibility criteria to purchase a home best suited to their needs on the open market.
It is available only in England an is delivered through Swaythling Housing Society. The HCA provides assistance in a form of loan of between 15%-50% of the value of the home being bought up to a maximum of £75,000. The home can not be over £300,000 (full market purchase price).
The loan will become a second charge on the property you purchase and can be repaid in whole or part at any time. No fees are payable whilst you remain a serving member of the Armed Forces. If you end as a serving member certain fees are payable.
For full details please open or download the attached leaflets at the top right hand side fo this page.
We are always looking for new an innovative ways of providing Low Cost Home Ownership, and as a result, more options may present themselves over time.
Please Note: Low Cost Home Ownership is not available to anyone who is considered to have access to sufficent resources to purchase a home that is suitable for their needs without any additional help.
Raglan Housing Association
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