Homestake Advisory Service
What does Ownership Options do?
Ownership Options is a not-for-profit organisation which has been working for 10 years in the provision of advice for disabled people. As a result of our work we have built up considerable expertise, skills and knowledge of the issues surrounding disabled people and home ownership availability in Scotland.
We aim to create equal access for disabled people, including people with physical disability, mental health or learning difficulties, to mainstream home ownership. We use approaches that enable disabled people to achieve equal levels of inclusion, choice and control with non-disabled people in the housing market. For more information about the work of Ownership Options, go to the main website.
Why is there a need for a specialist Homestake service to RSLs?
Disabled people are likely to have more difficulty in becoming homeowners, and in accessing more suitable accommodation. A recent report called Mind the Gap, commissioned by Communities Scotland highlighted the following:
- Households including Disabled people in Scotland are twice as likely to live in the social rented sector than those households without disabled members
- And they are only half as likely to buy a property with a mortgage
- Disabled people and their families also have lower than average incomes, as well as above average living costs.
Mind the Gap report, commissioned by Communities Scotland, August 2004
As a result, there is a need for more accessible housing to be planned, developed and built, and more assistance given to enable disabled people to access it.
The majority of Scotland's housing is now in the owner occupied sector. It can therefore offer a greater choice of properties, in more locations, than may be possible in the rented housing market.
Disabled people, or households with a disabled person, may have income, savings or other financial resources which they wish to invest in a suitable home. However they may face barriers to this choice of tenure – financial, lack of suitable properties, legal issues or lack of support.
60% of the general population in Scotland own their own home. Only 38% of physically disabled people do, and a very small percentage of people with learning disabilities. Ownership Options exists to provide practical and technical support to ensure disabled people have equal access to home ownership, and the information to decide whether this can offer an appropriate and sustainable housing solution.
What will the Homestake service from Ownership Options provide to RSLs?
The service was set up to assist RSLs to:
- Incorporate the specialist issues affecting disabled people when you are establishing the strategic and local market context for Homestake and identifying target groups;
- Integrate the needs of disabled people when identifying appropriate locations, types and prices for new housing developments;
- Directly help disabled people who may rely on unconventional income sources, have legal capacity issues, or have particular housing needs when buying through Homestake.
How long will the service run for?
Our service will run until 31st January 2008.
Communities Scotland will commission an independent review of the service towards the end of 2007. A Good Practice Guide for RSLs is planned as an output of the pilot, so that all RSLs are better able to provide the kind of services required themselves.