Quick answer
Staircasing shared ownership means buying a bigger share of your home from your landlord, usually a housing association, until you own up to 100%. The price usually comes from a new RICS valuation, and your rent falls as your share rises. We check your lease, deal with the landlord and your lender, and register the change.
Staircasing with a remortgage? Our remortgage quote lists "Staircasing" at £250 + VAT. Paying from savings, without new borrowing, we confirm our fee in writing before we start.
The short version
- You can usually buy shares of 10% or more at any time. Some leases allow 5%, older ones may need 25%.
- For shares of 5% or more, you pay for an RICS valuation, buy within 3 months of it, and may pay the landlord an admin fee. The 1% a year route uses the House Price Index instead.
- If you paid Stamp Duty in stages, more is due only once your share goes over 80%.
- Our fee: "Staircasing", £250 + VAT, listed in our remortgage quote as a charge that may apply, and charged on top of our remortgage fee when it does. Otherwise a written fee before we start.
On this page
- What is staircasing in shared ownership?
- Do you have to staircase in shared ownership?
- Can you own 100% of a shared ownership home?
- How does staircasing work?
- How much does staircasing cost?
- How do you work out the cost of staircasing?
- Do you pay Stamp Duty when you staircase?
- Can I staircase when I remortgage?
- Who oversees your matter
- What clients say
- Where we act
- Helpful guides
What is staircasing in shared ownership?
Staircasing is buying more shares in your shared ownership home. Shared ownership means you buy part of a home and pay rent to the landlord on the rest. Each time you staircase, your share goes up and the rent goes down, because it is based on the landlord's remaining share.
GOV.UK sets out the rules on buying more shares (staircasing):
- You can usually buy shares of 10% or more at any time. Some older leases need 25% or more, and some newer ones allow 5%.
- If you bought on or after 1 April 2021, you may be able to buy 1% a year for the first 15 years. The price is based on the original price, adjusted by the House Price Index, though you or the landlord can ask for a RICS valuation instead (whoever asks pays). There is no admin fee for these 1% purchases, and unused 1% purchases cannot be carried over to later years.
- Your lease, and the key information document from your landlord, say which apply to you.
From GOV.UK, checked on 29 October 2026.
Do you have to staircase in shared ownership?
No. Buying more shares is your choice, and you can stay at the share you have. If you sell, you sell the share you own. Our guide to selling a shared ownership home explains how that works, and the pros and cons of shared ownership covers the bigger picture.
Whether staircasing makes financial sense for you is a question for your lender or a mortgage broker. We deal with the legal side.
Can you own 100% of a shared ownership home?
Usually, yes. GOV.UK says most homes let you buy up to 100%. In a designated protected area, the limit may be 80%. Older persons' shared ownership homes have a limit of 75%.
When you own 100%, you stop paying rent to the landlord. A flat stays leasehold, so service charges carry on. For a house, your lease says whether, and how, the freehold passes to you. We check that when we read your lease.
How does staircasing work?
- Check the lease. We read your lease, or you check the key information document, for the share sizes allowed and any limit.
- Tell your landlord. You ask to buy more shares. Your landlord says whether it arranges the valuation or you do.
- Get a valuation. A surveyor registered with the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) values the home. You pay for it, and you must buy within 3 months of the valuation date or the home is valued again.
- Arrange the money. From savings, or by borrowing more. If you borrow, you need a legal adviser, and we act for your lender too.
- The legal work. We check the landlord's paperwork for the new share, deal with your lender, send the money on completion and update the register at HM Land Registry where needed.
- Stamp Duty. If a return is due, we file it and pay the tax from funds you give us.
Improvements you made with the landlord's written permission are left out of the value, so the price is based on the unimproved value. Without permission, the price is based on the current market value.
How much does staircasing cost?
| Who pays what | Cost |
|---|---|
| Our fee, with a remortgage | "Staircasing": £250 + VAT (£300 including VAT), listed in our remortgage quote as a charge that may apply, and charged on top of our remortgage fee when it does. |
| Our fee, without new borrowing | We confirm our fee in writing before we start. |
| RICS valuation | You pay for it. Your landlord tells you whether it or you arrange it. |
| Landlord's admin fee | Set by the landlord. GOV.UK says around £150 to £500 for a share of 5% or more. None on a 1% purchase. |
| Landlord's legal fees | The landlord pays its own. You pay yours. |
| Your lender | Any arrangement or valuation fees are between you and your lender. |
Set by the government, shown separately: Stamp Duty Land Tax and any HM Land Registry fee are not part of our fees. We confirm the Land Registry fee in your quote (see the HM Land Registry fees on GOV.UK).
Our remortgage solicitors page explains the rest of a remortgage. Fees checked against our quote engine on 29 October 2026.
How do you work out the cost of staircasing?
Multiply the valuation by the share you want to buy. For example, you own 40% of a home now valued at £300,000 and buy another 25%:
| Stage | Your share | Rent is paid on |
|---|---|---|
| Before | 40% | The landlord's 60% |
| You buy 25% of £300,000 = £75,000 | +25% | Changes when the purchase completes |
| After | 65% | The landlord's 35% |
Your rent falls because it is worked out on the landlord's remaining share. Your landlord confirms the new rent. On top of the price, add the costs in the table above and any Stamp Duty.
Do you pay Stamp Duty when you staircase?
It depends on how you paid when you bought. HMRC sets out two routes in its shared ownership guidance:
- You paid on the full market value at the start (a "market value election"): no more Stamp Duty when you staircase. If you later buy the freehold to reach 100%, a return is still needed, though no tax is due.
- You paid in stages: no Stamp Duty and no return while your share stays at 80% or less. Once a purchase takes you over 80%, a return is due, and tax is due on that purchase and any later ones. The tax is worked out on the total you have paid for your shares so far, not just the new share, so it can be more than you expect.
Our guide to shared ownership Stamp Duty has worked examples, and you can work out the Stamp Duty on a shared ownership purchase. Checked on 29 October 2026. This is general information, not tax advice.
In Wales, Land Transaction Tax applies instead, and Welsh shared ownership schemes have their own staircasing rules. The rules on this page are England's.
Can I staircase when I remortgage?
Yes. Many people borrow more when they remortgage to pay for the new share. We act for you and your new lender at the same time, and the "Staircasing" line is listed in our remortgage quote as a charge that may apply, and charged on top of our remortgage fee when it does. Choose remortgage in our instant quote to see every line.
Which lender or product suits you is not something we can advise on. Speak to your lender or a mortgage broker. Buying your first share instead? See our shared ownership solicitors page.
Who oversees your matter
Shah Ali
Senior Partner & Founder
Supervises our conveyancing team.
What clients say
Where we act
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Leicester office 3rd Floor, St George's House, 6 St George's Way, Leicester LE1 1QZ 0116 393 0334
Conveyancing in Leicester
Waterstone Chambers LLP, trading as Waterstone Legal, is authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA No. 605949) and CQS accredited.
Helpful guides
This page is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice for your situation. Please speak to us before acting on it.