The current financial trends have inspired a number of reactions from potential customers and established alike. Is it a good time to sell or maybe your finances could be stretched to buy more property, after all many of the established property magnates that exist today made the bulk of their millions when the housing market was vulnerable.

Is there a way to make money in times of crisis, is it immoral to think of your gains in the presence of so much hardship and loss? Regardless of your moral standpoint or your intentions for entering or leaving the property ownership market, hundreds of thousands of people will continue to buy and hundreds of thousands will continue to sell, you just have to decide what side you want to be on.

First time buyers are always on someone’s radar, whether it's with the hope of taking advantage of their inexperience and their eagerness to the point of desperation to get their feet on the property ladder or to provide a fair service for individuals that historically have been overcharged and under-appreciated. Recently mortgage providers have been looking more favourably at ‘shared’ home buying. Where a decade or so ago they would have frowned upon such an arrangement, seeing the lack of tangible commitment as too high a risk to balance such a huge amount of money on. Lenders have now taken note of what the statistics reflect; when couples break up who do they rely on but their friends?  Partners come and go, friends have staying power; and this is finally now openly acknowledged and encouraged as opposed to being penalised by a section of the market dedicated to its encouragement and nurturing.

So who is on the look-out for such a mortgage, friends have been mentioned but it is also a way for those on a lower income bracket to buy a ‘part’ of the property with another individual as opposed to a lender such as a bank or housing association. The benefits of investing the amount they would traditionally put towards lining the pockets of a landlord in the form of a rented house or flat into their own ownership makes universal sense. It also allows those that desire a particularly pricey postcode but whose income won't allow them to be considered for such a mortgage.

Once you have decided this is the most financially sound way for you and your friends to get your feet on the property ladder, it is time to source the best mortgage for your purchase. As you all have different circumstances shopping for the right mortgage may take a while, you would have to question you are looking to buy equal parts of the property or will it be weighted according to desire or wage? Does one of you have a relatively low income but gets regular large bonuses, will a particular mortgage provider allow for him to make ad-hoc payments on the mortgage, if not will the individual be penalised by only being eligible for a smaller percentage of the property? Similarly, if one of you has a larger income but only wants to buy a small percentage of the property will she be rejected for not wanting to declare her entire wage packet for mortgage consideration?

With all the ins and outs of a mortgage agreement, it is essential for each member of the buying group to be fully aware of his or her position in the arrangement, what their responsibilities will be in the event of the financial demise of one or all of the other buying members. Ensuring that you understand all the legal implications involved with buying with friends or associates will go a long way to preventing trials and tribulations in the future that could have a detrimental effect on both your friendship and your financial state.