How does it work?

So how do I Co-Buy?

Well it is actually quite simple, though perhaps not immediate, but then getting the best things in life seldom are. This guide discusses property purchasing relating to UK law, but the principles are basically the same for most shared ownership purchases. As a rule of thumb, if in doubt get a lawyer to check it out. And of course if you have any questions, just ask us and we will be glad to help.

 At Co-Buyers we see the co-buying process as a four stage process.

1. Register with Co-Buyers and find other co-buyers
2. Get to know them & find a property
3. Sort out the legal stuff
4. Live the dream

Of course, within each of the above steps there are a number of areas that you should pay attention to. An overview of this is as follows:

Stage 1: Though shared ownership is now seen as a very viable option to property purchasing, especially for first time buyers, unless you are registered with Co-Buyers people will simply not be able to find you, or you them.

Stage 2: Once then you have found one or more potential co-buyers that fit the profile you are looking for it’s time to spend time getting to know them, after all these are the people you are considering living / investing with. Don’t be put off though, not only is this key to the process but it can also be great fun. In addition, going through the get to know them process also helps you formulate your own ideas about what you wish your future property to look and fell like. See our “get to know them guide” for more information and ideas about this. And of course as part of that process you can also spend some time finding that perfect property.

Of course there are a multitude of ways to search for the ideal property from web sites, local estate agents and newspapers. Whatever method you use we would suggest that where you are dealing with an estate agent, we would recommend that you check if your estate agent is a member of the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA) and as importantly that they are “Co-Buyer friendly”. More information on the NAEA can be found in the stuff we like section of Co-Buyers.

Stage 3: Having found your dream property there are a few other things that need to be finalised before move on.

• Do all Co-Buyers have the required finance in place?

Legally you can have up to four different names on the title deeds of a property and to support this there are a number of leading building societies that offer shared ownership / co-buyer mortgages.  Again, see the stuff we like section for more details.

• Have you agreed and signed a declaration of trust?

The declaration of trust is a legal document drawn up by all parties and which stipulates the purpose and intention of both the co-buyers and the property that is being purchased. This document covers many different areas such as investment levels, share of equity, terms of agreement, length of agreed initial purchase term, responsibilities between co-buyers, etc. Designed to protect the co-buyers interests in the property it also defines the agreed terms of separation / exit should one or more parties wish to terminate the shared ownership agreement.

The Declaration of Trust also then specifies how the proceeds of any sale are split should the property be sold, or part of sold (it is feasible that as shared ownership becomes more common the market selling a property share as one co-buyer moves on will also increase). Also it is prudent to specify that no one co-buyer could sell the property without the agreement of the other party(s).

• Have you got your will in order?

Something people often forget about or put off doing, but getting your will in order is something you should do. Whether there is an equal or unequal shareholding in any property, should one party die then the deceased co-buyers share will pass in accordance with the terms of that persons will. Where no will has been left, then the rules of intestacy apply. That means the government then decides how the assets will be split (so see below for more on will). Setting up a will is generally quite a simple and can done through your lawyer or even with a kit at home following a set of instructions. It also doesn’t really cost that much either considering that you have the peace of mind that should anything happen then things will happen as you would have wanted.


Stage 4: Enjoy!! There is nothing better than that feeling when you move in to a new home, your home and through your ideas and time make it in to your house.