Dealing with the sale of a Shared Ownership home of someone who's died
We are sorry for your loss, and during this difficult time, we will do all we can to make the process as straightforward as possible.
There are two options available to sell the home:
Option 1 - Selling with SOWN (recommended)
If you sell through SOWN, you can simultaneously market the property for sale at:
- The owned share percentage (the buyer must meet Shared Ownership eligibility checks)
- Selling at 100% (via staircasing) - this may involve additional legal steps and fees, but it opens your property to a wider audience of buyers. Please note that some homes have restrictions on full Staircasing - check with us before deciding how to proceed.
For more information about SOWN, our specialist Shared Ownership agent, click here.
Option 2 - Selling with SNG
If you decide to sell through SNG, you will only be able to market the property for sale at the owned share percentage.
We will advertise the property on our website and Share to Buy to help find you a buyer. If we haven’t found a buyer for the share, within 4 weeks, you will be free to advertise your home through either SOWN or an estate agent of your choice.
If you do sell with an agent, we'd recommend using an agent who is familiar with Shared Ownership as they will have experience and understanding of these types of sales.
If you decide to go with this option, you will need to provide the following information:
To market the home, an in date EPC (Energy Performance Certificate) is required. EPC's are valid for 10 years - you can check the status of the EPC on the Government website.
If the EPC is out of date, our partner agency NicheCom could help you get a new one, or alternatively you can find more details about finding an assessor on the Government website.
A RICS valuation is required to sell the property. This valuation will be used to determine the sale price of the home. We’ve put together a list of handpicked surveyors that we work with to help you get started.
Alternatively, you can choose another RICS surveyor as long as they are FRICS (Fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors), MRICS (Member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors) or AssocRICS qualified. Please note, you will need to share our RICS Valuation Guidance with your chosen surveyor.
Valuation validity periods:
- Selling the current share only: 12 months
- Selling 100% (staircasing): 3 months (extensions may incur extra cost)
The property listing gives us some important information about the home to enable us to market it on our website and Share to Buy.
Download hereOpens in a new windowWe recommend using our partner company NicheCom for professional photography and floor plan services - further information can be found here. If you would prefer to take your own photos please ensure they are taken in landscape format only.
A copy of the death certificate will be required to market the property.
A grant of probate will also be required before completion. If probate has not been granted by the time you are ready to market the home, you can provide a copy of the Will in the interim.
Important note for apartments
Due to building safety regulations, some lenders are requiring certain properties to have a completed EWS1 form.
Unfortunately, we have seen that some lenders may still wish to request this information even though it is not a legal requirement. SNG do not have an EWS1 in place for all buildings and should a buyer’s lender require this, your sale may be impacted. When we list your property we will highlight this to any buyers as part of the listing and suggest that they speak with their financial advisor before proceeding.
Further information about EWS1s and SNG's position is available here.
Lease length
All Shared Ownership homes are held on a leasehold basis. If the lease is under 85 years, this could affect your ability to sell or staircase. Please check the properties lease or contact us - we’ll review and explain your options.