If you are currently considering buying your first home then you may be shocked to see how much money you need upfront just to get your foot on the ladder. Most couples look to buy a two or three bedroom home ready for if they want to start a family but this can cost in excess of two hundred thousand pounds. It may be that although you can pay the rent, on paper you do not earn that much so although you know you could afford a mortgage, they simply will not lend you the money. If this is the case then you may need to start looking in to other options.

One of these options is to buy a shared ownership house. A shared ownership property allows you to purchase a percentage of it and rent the rest. It is often owned by a housing association or private company. You will pay your rent to them and they remained will go towards your mortgage. Buying part of a property allows you to get your foot on the ladder as you will not need to borrow as much or will you need as big a deposit as you would if you were buying normally off the open market.