Parliament originally intended that shared ownership should provide a stepping stone to full home ownership for those starting out with little capital but big dreams. Instead, predatory actions from those who should know better are turning those dreams into a nightmare.
Financially unsophisticated people on limited incomes wanting to get on the housing ladder entered into agreements where all the terms of trade are stacked against them and are now trapped in unsellable homes.
The Social Housing Bill currently working its way through the House of Lords purports to protect the pool of homes to rent at more affordable prices and to protect victims of certain injustices.
Last month, the House of Lords defeated the Government by a wide margin on Andy Burnham’s first day as Prime Minister by voting in favour of an amendment to the Bill which would see a full and fundamental review to address these abuses within 12 months of the act’s passing.
The Lords called for a new deal that revisits the apportionment of fees and charges and strikes the right balance between landlord and tenant in shared ownership.
Mr Burnham says he wants to build more social housing than has been achieved for decades, while Angela Rayner, the Housing Secretary, says she’s on the side of renters.
Shared ownership with “staircasing up to full ownership in due course” should be part of the mix. But if social providers can’t play by fair rules, then they should be forced to buy homes back to release their tenants from their imprisonment.
Social housing bills come along rarely. The injustice is real, and the need for reform is urgent. The opportunity to grasp this issue is now.
Otherwise, shared ownership as a concept will be finished. And that would be a shame, because it provides one of the few remaining opportunities for those of limited means to build a stake in their home.
