3 minutes reading time
(621 words)
A Warning from Within: ‘Don’t Do It’—The Shared Ownership Chronicles
Shared ownership was once sold as a way onto the housing ladder. Instead, for many, it has become a trap. Stories are now surfacing of people losing thousands of pounds through hidden costs, spiralling service charges, and years of neglect by councils and housing providers. One buyer has described the scheme as a nightmare, saying it cost them £12,000 and left them feeling misled.
Behind the headlines, a deeper problem remains. Councils were never designed or equipped to run shared ownership schemes. The reality is that they are stretched, under-resourced, and often lack the specialist expertise needed to manage the complex mix of mortgage, rent, service charges, and safety oversight that comes with these properties. What looks simple on paper – part-buy, part-rent – quickly becomes a tangled web once real-life costs and risks are factored in.
The cracks are most obvious when it comes to building safety. For years, councils have ignored or downplayed serious fire safety and cladding defects. Shared owners have been left footing the bill while living in buildings that remain unsafe. Some residents have seen their service charges climb above £5,000 a year, often with little explanation. Others face the uncertainty of dangerous cladding that still hasn’t been removed, even after years of warnings. It is a toxic combination of high costs and low accountability, with councils often hiding behind a lack of funding or passing responsibility onto others.
This Friday’s Cladding Matters will shine a light on this double bind. Shared owners are trapped in unsafe homes while paying for the privilege. Councils may present themselves as guardians of affordability, yet in practice many have turned a blind eye to safety defects, leaving thousands exposed to financial loss and real physical risk. At the same time, leaseholders in shared ownership are some of the least empowered residents – unable to push for change, yet still liable for the financial consequences of inaction.
Shared ownership requires specialist management, clear communication, and a real grasp of building safety regulation. These are areas where councils have repeatedly fallen short. A stark example lies in the aftermath of Grenfell, where concerns over building safety were thrown into sharp relief. At Royal Artillery Quays in Thamesmead, residents faced years of anxiety over fire safety defects, only to be told by Greenwich Council that there had been nothing wrong with the initial construction at the time of build.
For leaseholders, that felt like a dismissal of very real dangers. The result was frustration and mistrust. Instead of decisive action, residents were left with serious risks minimised or ignored, reinforcing the sense that councils are not equipped to manage schemes of this scale and complexity. The bigger question is whether councils should be running these schemes at all.
This week, Gareth Wax hosts the discussion, joined by myself, Hamish McLay, and Stephen Day as regular contributors. We are also joined by Zahrah Aullybocus, solicitor specialising in property, housing and conveyancing; and Matt Lismore, who lives in shared ownership accommodation and has faced several issues with the council.
Together, we’ll be asking the difficult questions: if councils cannot manage safety, affordability, and oversight, should they really be operating shared ownership schemes? And what does that mean for the thousands already caught up in this broken system? Join us on Friday 12th September for an unflinching look at shared ownership and the risks that have been ignored for too long.
Never miss an episode – subscribe to our YouTube channel to watch live or catch up: https://www.youtube.com/@SpillingTheProper-Tea
PS:
For content enquiries:This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
For podcast/media info:This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Behind the headlines, a deeper problem remains. Councils were never designed or equipped to run shared ownership schemes. The reality is that they are stretched, under-resourced, and often lack the specialist expertise needed to manage the complex mix of mortgage, rent, service charges, and safety oversight that comes with these properties. What looks simple on paper – part-buy, part-rent – quickly becomes a tangled web once real-life costs and risks are factored in.
The cracks are most obvious when it comes to building safety. For years, councils have ignored or downplayed serious fire safety and cladding defects. Shared owners have been left footing the bill while living in buildings that remain unsafe. Some residents have seen their service charges climb above £5,000 a year, often with little explanation. Others face the uncertainty of dangerous cladding that still hasn’t been removed, even after years of warnings. It is a toxic combination of high costs and low accountability, with councils often hiding behind a lack of funding or passing responsibility onto others.
This Friday’s Cladding Matters will shine a light on this double bind. Shared owners are trapped in unsafe homes while paying for the privilege. Councils may present themselves as guardians of affordability, yet in practice many have turned a blind eye to safety defects, leaving thousands exposed to financial loss and real physical risk. At the same time, leaseholders in shared ownership are some of the least empowered residents – unable to push for change, yet still liable for the financial consequences of inaction.
Shared ownership requires specialist management, clear communication, and a real grasp of building safety regulation. These are areas where councils have repeatedly fallen short. A stark example lies in the aftermath of Grenfell, where concerns over building safety were thrown into sharp relief. At Royal Artillery Quays in Thamesmead, residents faced years of anxiety over fire safety defects, only to be told by Greenwich Council that there had been nothing wrong with the initial construction at the time of build.
For leaseholders, that felt like a dismissal of very real dangers. The result was frustration and mistrust. Instead of decisive action, residents were left with serious risks minimised or ignored, reinforcing the sense that councils are not equipped to manage schemes of this scale and complexity. The bigger question is whether councils should be running these schemes at all.
This week, Gareth Wax hosts the discussion, joined by myself, Hamish McLay, and Stephen Day as regular contributors. We are also joined by Zahrah Aullybocus, solicitor specialising in property, housing and conveyancing; and Matt Lismore, who lives in shared ownership accommodation and has faced several issues with the council.
Together, we’ll be asking the difficult questions: if councils cannot manage safety, affordability, and oversight, should they really be operating shared ownership schemes? And what does that mean for the thousands already caught up in this broken system? Join us on Friday 12th September for an unflinching look at shared ownership and the risks that have been ignored for too long.
Never miss an episode – subscribe to our YouTube channel to watch live or catch up: https://www.youtube.com/@SpillingTheProper-Tea
PS:
For content enquiries:
For podcast/media info:
Stay Informed
When you subscribe to the blog, we will send you an e-mail when there are new updates on the site so you wouldn't miss them.
Comments