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Two-thirds of key workers want more shared ownership homes, landlord survey finds
A new survey by a housing association found that 69% of key workers agreed that more shared ownership homes should be built.
Aster Group surveyed 2,010 people across the country to find out communities’ needs in regard to housing, including 343 who identified as a key worker, such as teachers, carers and NHS staff.
The study found that 64% of people surveyed agreed that more affordable housing is needed across the country – with 69% of key workers agreeing that more shared ownership homes should be built after the tenure was explained to them.
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Under shared ownership, buyers with a smaller deposit can choose to purchase less than 100% equity in the property and pay rent on the remainder. They can then ‘staircase’ by increasing the amount of equity they own over time with the aim of full ownership.
The data also found that demand for shared ownership was slightly higher in Greater London (66%) than the national average.
Amanda Williams, chief investment officer at Aster, said that the COVID-19 pandemic “shone a light on the invaluable role key workers, from nurses and teachers to carers, play in our society”.
She added: “Yet it’s clear they’re recognising a real shortage of affordable housing where they live and, once they understand how shared ownership works, they see it as part of the solution.
“A broad range of housing tenures will always be crucial because people need choice to find the right option to suit their individual needs and circumstances.
“We believe shared ownership should always be in the mix because it’s flexible, secure, aspirational and offers a good alternative to renting privately.
“Thanks to recent reforms to the tenure – such as enabling people to staircase in smaller increments – shared ownership is now even more accessible.”
In the past decade Aster has built more than 8,500 affordable homes, 3,400 of which were for shared ownership.
Recent research by Savills found that shared ownership has added £6.5bn to housing associations’ turnover in the past decade.
Earlier in the year, a group of MPs called for “urgent” reforms to shared ownership, after an inquiry found that uncapped service charges, rising rents and unfair maintenance costs mean it is unaffordable.
The Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Select Committee found that the tenure was supposed to be an “affordable route to homeownership”, but has “failed to deliver on this for too many people, for too long”.
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