Equity Release and Shared Ownership

What is shared ownership?

Shared ownership is a government-backed scheme that allows buyers to purchase a percentage of a property — typically between 25% and 75% — and pay rent to a housing association on the remainder. Over time, owners can buy additional shares (a process called staircasing) up to 100% ownership.

Shared ownership properties are almost always leasehold, which adds a further layer of complexity for equity release lenders.

Can you get equity release on a shared ownership property?

Yes — but with significant restrictions. The key factors that affect eligibility:

You can only borrow against your owned share

Equity release lenders calculate the loan against the portion of the property you own, not the full market value. If you own a 50% share of a property worth £300,000, the lender treats your asset as worth £150,000 for LTV purposes. At age 68 with a typical 33% LTV, you might release approximately £49,500 — significantly less than if you owned the property outright.

Housing association consent is required

Almost all equity release lenders require written consent from your housing association before proceeding. The housing association holds a charge on the property for the unsold share and has a legitimate interest in any further charge being registered against it.

Some housing associations consent readily. Others refuse entirely as a matter of policy. A small number will consent with conditions attached. You should contact your housing association at the very beginning of the process — before instructing an adviser or lender — to establish their position.

Fewer lenders will consider shared ownership

Standard equity release lenders often exclude shared ownership properties from their criteria. The number of lenders who will actively consider these applications is limited. This makes independent adviser choice particularly important — an adviser with whole-of-market access is essential.

Lease length matters

As with all leasehold properties, the remaining lease length affects eligibility. Most lenders require a minimum of 75–80 years remaining. Shared ownership leases are typically granted for 99 or 125 years, so newer schemes are unlikely to have a lease length problem — but older shared ownership properties may.

See our guide to equity release for leasehold properties

Staircasing to 100% before taking equity release

If you want access to the full market value and the widest choice of lenders, staircasing your shared ownership property to 100% outright ownership first is worth considering. Once you own 100% of the property:

• The housing association no longer holds a stake
• Standard equity release applies with no consent requirement
• All ERC member lenders are potentially available
• The LTV calculation is based on full market value

The cost of staircasing is the purchase price of the remaining share at current market valuation, plus stamp duty (if applicable), valuation, and legal fees. Whether this is financially viable depends on the current value of the remaining share and whether you have the funds or access to finance to complete the purchase.

Alternatives if shared ownership equity release is not available

Speak to your housing association

Some housing associations operate their own later-life lending products or have partnerships with specific lenders. It is worth asking directly whether they have any supported routes for older shared owners wanting to access equity.

Rent increase negotiation

If equity release is unavailable, some shared owners who pay rent on the unsold portion explore negotiating a rent reduction or freeze with their housing association to improve cash flow.

Selling and downsizing

Selling the shared ownership property and purchasing a smaller outright-ownership property removes all shared ownership restrictions and makes standard equity release available. The transaction involves selling your share back through the housing association's resale process, which has its own rules and timescales.

See our guide to alternatives to equity release

What to do first

1. Contact your housing association and ask specifically whether they will consent to a lifetime mortgage being secured against your share of the property. Get their position in writing.

2. If they consent, instruct a whole-of-market equity release adviser who has experience with shared ownership cases. Not all advisers will have placed shared ownership equity release applications before.

3. If they refuse, ask whether there are any circumstances under which they would reconsider, and ask whether they have any supported later-life lending options of their own.