Homes to buy
We don’t just provide affordable homes for rent. We also offer quality housing for those looking to enjoy all the benefits of owning their own home.
These properties are available through Onward Living, our dedicated home ownership brand.
Whether you’re a first-time buyer, a growing family, starting again or just thinking about downsizing, we can help kick-start your journey to home ownership through affordable solutions including Shared Ownership and Rent to Buy.
Shared Ownership
We know that buying a home on the open market isn’t getting any easier. Even if you manage to scrape together the huge deposit needed, there’s still the small matter of getting your mortgage offer accepted. But if you think that means home ownership is out of your reach, think again. The government-backed shared ownership scheme is here to help you make that first step on the property ladder.
Here’s how it works. You buy a percentage share (between 25% and 75%, depending on what you can afford) of a new home, with a deposit starting from just 5%. You then pay Onward a reduced monthly rent for the remaining share that you don’t own.
Once you’re ready, you can buy more shares of your home until, in most cases, you own the whole thing – lock, stock and barrel (this is known as staircasing). Find out more about shared ownership and whether it could be an option for you.
Rent to buy
For many of us, the first step towards owning our own home is saving up for a deposit. But if most of your money goes on rent and other living expenses each month, it can be a real struggle to build up enough savings for a place of your own. That’s where Rent to Buy comes in. The government scheme was set up to help renters make that transition into home ownership.
With Rent to Buy, you can rent a newly-built home from Onward at approximately 20% below the market rate for up to five years, giving you the opportunity to free up some spare cash to save for a deposit towards the purchase of your first home.
At the end of the five years you can either buy the property you’ve been renting, leave the property, or continue renting but at full market rent value. Find out more about Rent to Buy and whether it could be an option for you.