The Government and the housing sector are falling short of educating shared ownership buyers, according to research from YouGov.

The survey of over 200 people that own homes through shared ownership schemes was commissioned by housing association Aster Group. It revealed barriers preventing the widespread adoption of the scheme.

Among the barriers are a lack of support and affordability. Only 14 per cent of respondents reported that they had received information about the scheme from the Government, with half relying on housing associations. Added to this, 10 per cent had grown their equity stakes, with 63 per cent of those that hadn’t citing affordability as the reason. And of those surveyed, 52 per cent weren’t aware that they could move between shared ownership properties.

When asked what would make the process easier, 40 per cent of those who had staircased (bought further shares in their property) said lower or no stamp duty on the higher ownership thresholds. A further 25 per cent said a simpler mortgage application, and 25 per cent said a better understanding of staircasing.

Despite this, 62 per cent of respondents said they were likely to recommend shared ownership to a friend or family member. However, of those who wouldn’t, 59 per cent said they found housing associations difficult to deal with, and 49 per cent said there were unexpected fees associated with buying and living in a shared ownership home.