Your FAQs – the questions Sparrow customers are asking the most

Sparrow Shared Ownership was launched in August 2024 following the acquisition by the pension fund USS of more than 3,000 shared ownership homes from Sage Homes. The portfolio of homes, which is located across the UK, consists of shared ownership homes across 250 Sage Homes sites.

What makes us a bit different as a shared ownership Registered Provider is that we were launched as a result of an investment by a single UK pension fund. The Regulator requires all Registered Providers to be well governed, financially viable, and to provide safe and good quality homes for their customers.

Sparrow Shared Ownership is a for profit Registered Provider (No. 4636), regulated by the Regulator of Social Housing. 
Read Our story

One of the UK’s largest institutional investors, USS was established in 1974 as the principal pension scheme for universities and higher education institutions in the UK. It works with around 330 employers to help build a secure financial future for more than 500,000 members and their families. USS made its first investment into shared ownership in 2020.

Find out more about USS on its website here

We have entered into an agreement with Sage so you can continue to access its services and pay your rent in the usual way. This arrangement will continue until we’re ready to consult with you again.

Over the coming months, we will be working hard to build Sparrow so that it looks like the Sage organisation that you currently deal with. As we progress, we’ll consult with you again about what you want as we get ready to take over from Sage in providing you with the services you currently receive.

Yes. You will continue to have full access to your My Sage Home account using the same login details. We are working on developing a new customer portal dedicated to Sparrow customers which will eventually replace My Sage Home. We will be in touch at a later date to explain how we will move your account over.

Vist My Sage Home 

Absolutely. Sparrow is fully committed to supporting you on your journey to either owning more shares in your home or staircasing to full ownership.

View our staircasing page.

You can sell your shared ownership home at any time. What happens when selling a shared ownership home will depend on your lease. You will have the option to buy the remaining shares and sell the property outright. 

See our Selling your home page

Yes, you can increase your share in a shared ownership home through a process known as ‘staircasing’. Staircasing allows you to own more of the property as and when you can afford to do so. 

See our Buying more shares page

You will find details about what you can and can’t do to your home without our permission in your lease. While you’re able to decorate your home as you like, you will require permission to make larger alterations.

Subletting your home will depend on your lease. It is normally possible to have a lodger, but you’ll need permission from Sparrow first.

This will depend on factors such as whether the property is a house or a flat, and if the repairs are internal or related to the structure of the property.  As a rule, you will be responsible for maintaining your shared ownership home internally, and externally if it is a house.

A new build home will usually come with a 10-year building guarantee as well as a defect period where the builder will rectify faults due to poor workmanship or materials. If the home is sold with white goods, these will also come with a guarantee.

Customers must make Sparrow aware of any pets that will be living in the property to make sure they are accepted under our Sparrow Pet Policy. 

Approved pets will be registered on a Pet Agreement Form. You can find this form on My Sage Home.

You are free to decorate your Sparrow home however you like. But please remember there will be restrictions on major alterations or structural changes so please check before starting any work.

The annual rent on a shared ownership property is usually set at 2.75% of the value of the share you do not own. This will increase annually, and the terms of the increase is set out in your lease.

A service charge is an amount charged by a landlord to a leaseholder relating to the upkeep and maintenance of communal areas in a block and/or estate, in line with the terms of the lease or tenancy agreement. 

A service charge is separate from individual rent or mortgage payments and enables Sparrow to recover the such costs as cleaning, garden maintenance, communal utilities, health and safety, building insurance and management costs. 

Sparrow doesn't make any profit from service charges and is required by law to set service charges at a reasonable level.

Sparrow will provide buildings insurance cover and will recover the cost of this from the shared owner through service charges. Please note, the shared owner is responsible for arranging their own contents insurance.

While you’re welcome to buy with another person, shared ownership does not mean you have to share the ownership of the property.

When you bought your home you will have either purchased it with a parking space or without a parking space. If you did not buy a parking space, you will not have an automatic right to park your car in the car park or on the estate roads of your development.

This also depends on your particular development and what your lease says. A lot of new developments have restrictions on parking vans and other commercial vehicles. We can help you confirm any restrictions at your development through your My Sage Homes account.