The investigation will look at the challenges associated with the scheme when it comes to reselling, affordability issues around service charge and maintenance as well as mortgage availability.
The committee will also examine any barriers to achieving full homeownership and whether the scheme is a genuinely affordable option.
Its inquiry will include the shared ownership scheme which has been in place since 1980 and the right to shared ownership scheme which is being delivered through the Affordable Homes Programme 2021-2026. The newer initiative allows social and affordable housing tenants to buy a share of the rented home they live in.
The focus of the investigation will be on the initiatives in England.
Written evidence can be submitted until 14 September and evidence sessions are expected to begin in October.
The committee will ask whether the scheme is good value for money, how the government can ensure it remains affordable when costs and inflation rise, and whether alternative schemes such as rent to buy offer better value for money.
Clive Betts, chair of the Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Committee, said: “Affordability of housing and homeownership is a key policy area, especially for first-time buyers during a cost-of-living crisis. Shared ownership has, in the past, been hailed as an answer to the housing crisis for younger people, offering the cheapest way to get on the housing ladder.
“In the committee’s inquiry, we want to examine some of the barriers to homeownership through the shared ownership schemes in England and also look at issues such as the challenges faced by people in reselling these properties. We want to explore whether shared ownership is providing the right answer for those people locked out of traditional homeownership and who are hit by rocketing private rents.”
