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The Buying Process

Below is what the Shared Ownership home buying process looks like after you reserve a home with Southern Housing New Homes. There's 12 clear steps between reserving your home and moving in, which usually happen over the space of 12 weeks, they might not be one stage every week, you might find some happen closer together, but we'll be there for you every step of the way.

  1. Choose and instruct your solicitor
    • Completing any initial paperwork
    • Supplying ID documents
    • Paying a deposit on account
  2. Apply for your mortgage

    Submit your mortgage application as early as possible. Your lender will arrange a property valuation, and the valuer will contact us directly to arrange this.

  3. The Memorandum of Sale is issued

    We’ll send a Memorandum of Sale to your solicitor and ours. This document includes important details about the sale – it’s vital that your mortgage offer matches the information on it (e.g. deposit amount and mortgage term).

    We’ll also send you a Direct Debit form to set up your rent account for when you move in.

  4. Legal documents are sent to your solicitor

    Our solicitors will send a contract pack to your solicitor within two working days of issuing the Memorandum of Sale.

  5. Legal checks and searches begin
    • Contract pack review
    • Local authority and environmental searches
    • Initial legal enquiries
  6. Solicitor-to-solicitor communication

    Our solicitors will respond to any legal enquiries and review your mortgage offer for approval. Your solicitor will send you a mortgage deed to sign and return.

  7. You receive a legal report
    • Results of searches
    • Answers to enquiries
    • Details of your mortgage offer
  8. Signing contracts and paying your deposit
    • Sign and return your contracts promptly
    • Pay your purchase deposit to your solicitor
    • Give them written authority to exchange contracts (they cannot do this without your permission)
  9. Exchange of contracts

    Once everything is agreed, your solicitor will exchange contracts with ours. At this point, both sides are legally committed to the sale.

    If your home is still being built, we’ll agree that completion will take place on notice (i.e. when the home is finished).

  10. Completion statement and getting ready for the big day
    • Your solicitor will prepare a completion statement
    • They will request the mortgage funds from your lender
    • The statement will also include rent and service charges in advance, due on the day of completion

    This part ties up all the loose ends – so you're ready to get the keys and step into your new home.

  11. Completion day – today’s the day!

    On the day of completion, your solicitor will transfer the final funds to our solicitors. Once that’s done and everything's in place…

  12. Collect your keys – woohoo!

    Once our solicitor confirms receipt of the funds, we’ll be there to meet you at your new front door and hand over the keys to your brand-new home.


We'll always try to avoid using jargon, but sometimes it's unavoidable, so if you're not sure what something means we've built a handy Jargon Buster just for you. 

Use our Jargon Buster

Listen to the journey

Our very own Director of Sales and Mareting, Vikki Walker, talks you through the Shared Ownership journey, in the below video taken form our live podcast episode produced in Hackney Wick. If podcasts are your learning method, then check out more of our episodes! 

Sales Progressor Super Hero

Once you’ve reserved your new home with Southern Housing, you’ll be introduced to your Sales Progressor. They’ll be your main point of contact throughout the buying journey, helping you move smoothly from reservation to exchange of contracts.

Your Sales Progressor will:

  • Guide you through the key stages of the home buying process
  • Keep in regular contact with you, your solicitor, and our legal team
  • Help ensure you stay on track to meet your exchange deadline

Sales Support Team

Solicitor Sidekick

If you’ve chosen a solicitor from our recommended panel, we’ll be able to work closely with them to keep things moving. These solicitors are experts in Shared Ownership conveyancing, understand the development you're buying on, and may already be progressing enquiries for other buyers on the same site.

If you decide to use a solicitor who isn’t on our panel, please be aware that we won’t be able to liaise with them directly or follow up on your behalf if delays occur. This can slow down the process, especially if they’re unfamiliar with Shared Ownership.

We know that sometimes delays can happen during the buying process, and they’re not always within your control. If you need a little more time to reach exchange, we may be able to offer an extension in exceptional circumstances. Just ask your solicitor to get in touch with ours to make the request.

Got questions?

What’s next?

We can only confirm your home completion once our solicitors have received the completion funds in full. As soon as that’s confirmed, your Sales Executive will give you a call to arrange a convenient time to meet you at your new home and hand over the keys.

When you arrive at the property, your Sales Executive will:

  • Give you a tour of your new build home
  • Show you how to use the appliances
  • Record your utility meter readings with you
  • Let you know about any reported defects that are due to be completed by the developer

You’ll also get your Home User Guide (HUG), including:

  • Warranty information for your appliances
  • Post-completion contact details
  • Helpful guidance about your new home and the wider development

It’s all designed to help you feel informed, supported, and confident as you settle into your new Southern Housing home.

Post Completion Process