A single mum who worked 50-hour weeks for over two and half years to save money for her own house has discovered she can no longer afford the property after a giant £37,000 price hike. Ellen Perry from Chester is an NHS worker who worked long hours to get onto the property ladder.
The house that she had her heart set on was a brand-new property with three bedrooms as part of a shared ownership scheme at a Saughall development. Ellen who lives with her teenage daughter couldn't wait to have a home to call their own.
Ellen said she paid a £500 deposit for the property in November 2021. She said she had agreed the price of £250,000 with Thompson Developments who are based in Flintshire.
The healthcare assistant signed up to buy the house through the shared ownership scheme - where one can buy 50 per cent of the property whilst a landlord owns the remaining 50 per cent - in December 2021. Ellen said the completion date was the end of March 2022, reports CheshireLive.
Ellen said there had been various delays in terms of the house and the necessary paperwork being ready. The date kept being put back and in October she was informed her mortgage rate was going up by £140 a month due to interest rates rising.
She is now devastated to have been told that the price of the three-bed property has gone up by £37,000, taking it out of her reach financially. Ellen, who works at the Countess of Chester for 30 hours a week as well as putting in around 20 hours overtime at weekends in A&E, told CheshireLive she simply can't afford this higher price and is now out of pocket to the tune of around £1,000.
She has had to fork out for various fees such as solicitor's fees, mortgage fees and a deposit on new flooring for her dream home. She said she had been told that the developers, North Wales-based Thompson Developments had moved the shared ownership contract from Knutsford-based Auxesia Homes to Leeds-based Heylo Housing and she would now need to deal with them if still interested in purchasing the property.
Ellen said she had been visiting her dream home on a regular basis, taking photos and videos, as her excitement at the prospect of moving into a house of her own grew. Reflecting on the time taken to get the property ready, she said she had noticed the focus in terms of building at the development appeared to go on the privately-sold properties rather than the shared ownership homes.
As time went on, and she was still no closer to moving in, she was horrified to get a phone call this month to inform her that the price of the three-bed property had now gone up. Ellen's mortgage offer has also now expired and she said she would not be able to get a mortgage for the new higher price.
She said she has managed to arrange for the return of her £500 deposit to reserve the plot on the 28-home development called Pear Tree Grange in Saughall. She had even told her landlord that she was moving out and is now having to see if she is able to stay on there for the time being.
Ellen told CheshireLive: "I’m a single parent and I’m on a low wage working for the NHS. I’ve worked 50-56 hrs per week for the past two and a half years to be able to afford this house.
"I've been going to what was meant to be my dream home regularly, taking pictures and videos of the progress, thinking soon this house will be mine." Explaining the process she had gone through to try to buy her dream property, Ellen said: "I put the reservation fee down in December 2021 and everyone else seems to have moved in now apart from the 50 per cent shared ownership property owners.
"They seemed to stop working on my house in October 2022. Two days before Christmas I received a WhatsApp message from the owner of the development company advising me that they’ve parted ways with Auxesia and if I was still interested in buying the house he would put me in the right direction.
"After a telephone conversation he advised that he was dealing with a new affordable company called Heylo and that I would know more after the new year. I contacted Auxesia, as I wondered why they hadn’t told me they were pulling out, and they were shocked and unaware that the development company were doing this.
"On January 9, I was asked to give a number a ring as they’d spoken to the new affordable company. When I phoned, the lady advised that the price of my house had increased from £250,000 agreed in November 2021 to £287,000.
"I can’t afford any increase. My original mortgage was £440 a month then rent on top at £290.
"After the interest increase my mortgage went to £570. I had my mortgage in place and ready to move.
"When I found out, I couldn't stop crying. We'd even started packing to move to our new home.
"It's just horrendous. Me and my daughter are devastated.
"I'm so upset. For the past two and a half years I've been working 30 hours a week in my job in the opthalmology department at the Countess, as well as 20 hours at weekends in A&E or my department, just to get my salary up and to save the £24,000 deposit.
"I'm gutted. I just feel like it's been ripped away from me. Interest rates are sky high now too.
"As far as I am concerned the company has exchanged contracts and just walked away from the deal. It's completely wrong.
"This shouldn’t be allowed to happen. It’s disgusting.
"Auxesia was frustrated at the delay also and advised me they were waiting for certificates." She is out of pocket to the tune of around £1,000, including around £250 plus VAT on solicitor's fees, £395 to her mortgage company and £500 as part payment on flooring, which she says she will not get back.
Ellen added: "Originally I was going to go for a two-bed house but the affordability let me go for a three-bed so I did. If I'd gone for a two-bed there would only have been a £5,000 increase.
"It's been really upsetting. It's caused me so much stress.
"They contacted me two days before Christmas to say they were parting ways with Auxesia. To message me a couple of days before Christmas.
"My heart was coming out of my chest with worry. Talk about happy new year for 2023.
"It was meant to be a fresh start in a lovely new home. Now I feel that it's out of my reach.
"On January 9, I was asked to give a number a ring as they’d spoken to the new affordable company. When I phoned the lady advised that the price of my house had increased from 250,000 agreed in November 2021 to 287,000.
"I can’t afford any increase. My original mortgage was £440 a month then rent on top at £290.
"After the interest increase my mortgage went to £570." Ellen said she had been informed that Auxesia had now terminated their contract with Thompson Developments.
Cheshire Live has contacted Thompson Developments, Auxesia Homes and Heylo Housing. At the time of publishing no response has been received.
A Heylo spokesperson said: ""Heylo has not entered into any contract with Thompson Developments on this property and at this time has no involvement at all with the property, including any increase in price charges or mortgages.
"All enquiries should be made directly to Thompson Developments who are responsible for delivering the homes on the scheme."
