Sell your share without the guesswork
Understand your lease, navigate the selling process and get an estimated home value — with no surprises along the way.
A demonstration of Ask Stairpay. Question: Are there any restrictions about selling in my lease? Answer: Yes. Your landlord gets first refusal, so they have a nomination period to find a buyer before you can sell on the open market. Your lease sets how long that lasts, and a RICS valuation sets the price.
Selling your shared ownership home
If you're looking to move on from your shared ownership home, there are a few things it's useful to know ahead of time so you can be prepared throughout.
- Before you start · You
Check your lease
Confirm what your lease says about selling before you commit to anything.
Your lease sets the notice you have to give, how long your landlord has to find a buyer, and whether any restriction applies to selling at all. Checking it costs nothing.
Stairpay reads it for youUpload your lease once and ask what it says about selling. The answer comes back with the clause it came from, in plain English.Understand your lease - When you are ready · You
Tell your landlord
Give formal notice that you intend to sell.
This is the stage that starts the clock. Your landlord will set out what happens next; your lease specifies how notice has to be given. Nothing before this point commits you to selling.
Apply through StairpayClarion residentsClarion shared owners can submit an application to sell through Stairpay. Create your account to get a full overview of the process, see the details for your property and submit your application.Create your account - Once notice is given · A RICS surveyor
Get a valuation
An independent RICS surveyor sets the price your share is sold at.
The valuation determines the sale price, and your landlord works out the value of your share from it. You pay a fee and are told the cost before it goes ahead. Commissioning a valuation does not commit you to selling, but its expiry date paces every stage that follows.
Ask about your landlord's panelMany landlords work with an approved list of RICS surveyors, sometimes at a reduced rate, and some will only accept a valuation from a surveyor on it. Ask yours who is on their panel before you book. - After the valuation · You and your solicitor
Sign the contract of sale
Agree the terms of the sale and name the solicitor acting for you.
Once your landlord has the valuation report they will ask you to sign a contract of sale setting out the fee and the terms, and to provide the details of your solicitor for when a buyer is found. If you bought with someone else and you are both named on the lease, you both have to sign.
- Set by your lease · Your landlord
Nomination period
Your landlord markets your share to buyers on their own list first.
Your landlord has first refusal, so during this window you cannot sell to a buyer of your own choosing. A buyer they find goes through much the same process you did when you bought. The nomination period is defined in your lease.
Check your nomination period - If no buyer is found · You and an estate agent
Open market
Once the nomination period ends you are free to list with an agent of your choice.
If your landlord has not found a buyer by the end of the nomination period you may advertise the home yourself or through any agent. A buyer still has to meet the conditions set out in the lease, so finding an agent with experience of shared ownership is worthwhile.
Every lease is different. Yours sets the fees, the notice you have to give and how long your landlord has to find a buyer, so check it before you plan around any of this.
- Step 1 of 6. Before you start. You. Check your lease. Confirm what your lease says about selling before you commit to anything. Your lease sets the notice you have to give, how long your landlord has to find a buyer, and whether any restriction applies to selling at all. Checking it costs nothing.
- Step 2 of 6. When you are ready. You. Tell your landlord. Give formal notice that you intend to sell. This is the stage that starts the clock. Your landlord will set out what happens next; your lease specifies how notice has to be given. Nothing before this point commits you to selling.
- Step 3 of 6. Once notice is given. A RICS surveyor. Get a valuation. An independent RICS surveyor sets the price your share is sold at. The valuation determines the sale price, and your landlord works out the value of your share from it. You pay a fee and are told the cost before it goes ahead. Commissioning a valuation does not commit you to selling, but its expiry date paces every stage that follows.
- Step 4 of 6. After the valuation. You and your solicitor. Sign the contract of sale. Agree the terms of the sale and name the solicitor acting for you. Once your landlord has the valuation report they will ask you to sign a contract of sale setting out the fee and the terms, and to provide the details of your solicitor for when a buyer is found. If you bought with someone else and you are both named on the lease, you both have to sign.
- Step 5 of 6. Set by your lease. Your landlord. Nomination period. Your landlord markets your share to buyers on their own list first. Your landlord has first refusal, so during this window you cannot sell to a buyer of your own choosing. A buyer they find goes through much the same process you did when you bought. The nomination period is defined in your lease.
- Step 6 of 6. If no buyer is found. You and an estate agent. Open market. Once the nomination period ends you are free to list with an agent of your choice. If your landlord has not found a buyer by the end of the nomination period you may advertise the home yourself or through any agent. A buyer still has to meet the conditions set out in the lease, so finding an agent with experience of shared ownership is worthwhile.
Every lease is different. Yours sets the fees, the notice you have to give and how long your landlord has to find a buyer, so check it before you plan around any of this.
Sell without surprises
Ask about your nomination period, the valuation or what you will pay, or read the questions sellers ask us most, below.
How long is the nomination period on my lease?
It is set by your lease and it varies between landlords. During that period your landlord looks for a buyer before you can market the home yourself. Upload your lease and we will tell you the period in your own document.
Upload your leaseCan I sell for more than the valuation?
Not usually while your landlord is finding a buyer, because a RICS valuation sets the price for that period. If the home reaches the open market there can be more room, but your lease and your landlord's rules still apply.
Ask about the valuationWhat do I pay, and when?
Expect a valuation fee and your landlord's admin fee for selling near the start, then legal fees and any estate agent costs when you complete. The amounts vary by landlord, so ask yours for a written list before you begin.
Ask about the feesCan I buy more shares and sell at the same time?
Yes, in a lot of cases — this is known as back-to-back staircasing. You buy the remaining share and sell the home outright, with both completing at the same time, so the purchase is funded out of the sale rather than out of your own pocket. It means the buyer gets the whole home instead of a share, which widens who can buy it. Not every landlord handles it the same way, so ask yours early: it changes the valuation, the fees and the order things happen in.
Ask about back-to-back staircasing