Co-Ownership Housing has launched its first ever Shared Ownership week in Northern Ireland.
Their new campaign has been running between 15th – 21st of September and it is dedicated to raising awareness of share ownership as an affordable home ownership solution for first time buyers looking to get on the property ladder.
A new website has been published at www.sharedownershipni.co.uk and this will provide potential buyers with bundles of information.
Co-ownership is the shared ownership scheme that helps first time buyers and others to get onto the property market.
The buyer will choose their own property with a maximum value of £150,000 anywhere in Northern Ireland.
The purchaser will buy a starter share in the value of their home which usually equates to between 50% – 90% and pay rent on the remaining share.
The home buyers can then increase their share in the property at any time in part or in full to own their home outright. This process is also known as staircasing.
Gillian Hughes, company secretary, Co-Ownership Housing, said: “Our aim is also to educate on shared ownership and to help people understand that Co-Ownership is accessible for a wide range of buyers, right across Northern Ireland.
“We hope that with our effort to educate and raise awareness of shared ownership, we will be able to continue to make a real difference in people’s lives and help to make people’s dreams of buying their own home a reality.”
Co-Ownership Housing is hosting an information event for the public at its Murray Street, Belfast, office on Wednesday, September 21 from 5pm until 7pm.
At the information event, potential buyers will have the opportunity to meet with shared ownership experts and discuss their eligibility for the scheme.
The demand for people to own their own home in Northern Ireland is high; however home ownership figures are down in recent years.
Potential buyers are not only challenged by expensive house prices but also by the expensive deposit requirements and the even stricter lending criteria.
It is predicted that the private rental housing sector in Northern Ireland will continue to grow and prosper which make it more difficult for those in privately rented accommodation to make the move to owning their own property.
Co-Ownership Housing has had over 700 successful applications to the scheme in the last 12 months alone.
