Effective date: 3 November 2025
Last updated: 3 November 2025
Welcome
Welcome to Own Homes. Your privacy matters to us. This notice explains what data we collect, why we collect it, how we use it, and the choices you have.
When we say “Own Homes,” “we,” “our,” or “us,” we mean Own Homes. We are the data controller for personal data collected through our website, app, forms, and customer onboarding.
This privacy notice applies to people in the United Kingdom and the Isle of Man and reflects the UK GDPR, the Data Protection Act 2018, and relevant Isle of Man data protection law.
If anything here isn’t clear, please get in touch with us at hello@ownhomes.com, we’ll be happy to help.
1. About Own Homes
Own Homes is a socially responsible landlord helping to turn rent into homeownership.
We operate in the Isle of Man and the United Kingdom. Own Homes is a part of Own Group Limited and the registered address is: 8 St. George’s Street, Douglas, Isle of Man IM1 1AH. Registration number: 022350V.
We help those who can afford a mortgage but struggle to save for a deposit to become homeowners by providing a clear, structured way to RentSaveOwn.
We provide information, guidance, and connections to trusted housebuilders and lenders. We’re not a mortgage lender or financial adviser.
This Platform and all its content belong to Own Homes. It’s designed to provide you with information, not to form any contract or guarantee participation.
2) The data we collect (and when)
We only collect what is necessary to run our services, keep you safe, and meet our legal duties.
a) When you visit our website/app
- Technical data: IP address, device type, browser, pages viewed, time on site
- Analytics: click paths, form interactions (go to our Cookie policy)
b) When you register your interest
- Contact details: name, email, phone.
- Location info: postcode/region.
- Profile type: homebuyer/housebuilder/lender.
c) When you apply to Own Homes
- Contact details: name, email, phone.
- Identity: date of birth, address history (as required for checks).
- Household information: age, household size.
- Employment: role/status, employer (as needed).
- Financials: income band, savings status, rental history.
- Property information: development, address, purchase price (indicative).
- Onboarding forms: information you provide to assess eligibility.
d) When you become a homebuyer
- Tenancy/account records: address, joint account holder (if any), account number.
- Safety and compliance: gas/electrical safety certificates, Right to Rent documents (where applicable), tenancy deposit scheme records.
- Savings activity: rent paid, savings portion, arrears or top-ups.
- Mortgage preparation: indicative valuations, affordability status, and lender readiness.
- Insurance confirmations: buildings and contents cover.
- Communications: service updates, handover details, key dates, warranties.
e) Info from third parties (as needed)
- Joint account holders / your legal representatives.
- Housebuilders, conveyancers, valuers.
- Mortgage lenders and/or brokers.
- Credit reference and fraud prevention agencies.
- Debt collection agencies (only if needed).
- Regulators, ombudsman, law enforcement (where required by law).
- Payment providers and IT/hosting partners (as processors or controllers, as appropriate).
We don’t knowingly collect data from children. Our services are for people aged 18+.
3. Why we use your data (lawful bases)
We can only use your personal data when permitted by law. This is called the lawful basis. The lawful basis stated for each is explained below:
- Contract: Processing your data is necessary for a contract you have with us, or because we have asked you to take specific steps before entering into that contract.
- Legal obligation: Processing your data is necessary for compliance with a legal obligation.
- Public task: Processing your data because we are required by law to do so in the public interest—for example, to submit mandatory housing statistics to your local authority.
- Legitimate interests: Processing your data is necessary to support a legitimate interest of another party or we have, only where your own interests do not outweigh this.
- Consent: You have given us your consent to process your personal data for the specific purpose we have explained to you. You have the right to withdraw your consent at any time. To do so, contact the Data Protection Officer using the details provided below.
To help us manage your account, here’s how we use your information:
| Purpose | Examples | Lawful basis |
|---|---|---|
| Respond to enquiries & registrations. | Contact you about your interest. | Legitimate interests. |
| Assess applications. | Affordability, eligibility, KYC/AML checks. | Contract / Legitimate interests / Legal obligation. |
| Set up and manage your account. | Tenancy docs, rent collection, savings allocation. | Contract. |
| Provide service updates. | Build progress, handover, warranties. | Contract. |
| Match you with partners. | Housebuilders and lenders you choose to engage. | Legitimate interests / Consent (where required) |
| Prevent fraud & financial crime. | Identity checks, AML/CTF, Right to Rent. | Legitimate interests. |
| Analyse and improve. | Website analytics, service performance. | Legitimate interests. |
| Marketing (optional) | Newsletters, updates, offers. | Consent. |
| Regulatory reporting | Housing statistics, compliance. | Legal obligation / Public interest |
You can withdraw consent at any time (for example, for marketing) by selecting unsubscribe or by emailing hello@ownhomes.com
4. Special category and criminal offence data
We’ll only collect sensitive data if we need to (and only with the correct conditions in law).
- Special category data (e.g., certain identity checks): we rely on explicit consent where required.
- Criminal offence data (if needed for fraud/AML screening): we rely on public-interest and fraud prevention conditions permitted by law.
5. Marketing and your choices
If you opt in, we may send:
- Updates on new homes and partner housebuilders
- News about savings/mortgage partners (and tips)
- Progress updates about Own Homes and RentSaveOwn
- Case studies and success stories
- Promotions or incentives from selected partners
You’re in control: unsubscribe any time via the email link or hello@ownhomes.com. We won’t share your data with third-party marketers without your explicit consent.
6. Cookies and analytics
We use cookies to make our site work better and to understand how people use it.
- Essentials: keep the site/app working
- Preferences: remember your settings
- Analytics: help us improve (e.g., Google Analytics)
- Advertising (optional): retargeting via platforms like Google or Meta (only where allowed and with consent where required)
You can manage cookies in your browser or visit our Cookie policy to learn more
7. Who we share your data with
We only share data with trusted organisations to run our services, meet legal duties, or when you ask us to.
Some of these organisations we share your data with act as:
- Processors (following our instructions).
- Others may be controllers (with their own legal duties).
We carry out due diligence and use appropriate contracts.
a. Our service providers and why they need your information:
| Service provider | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Housebuilders | To progress your home and legal steps. |
| Conveyancers and other legal representatives | To process your application, administer your account, such as identity and proof of funds. |
| Mortgage lender | For mortgage readiness (only with your instruction/consent). |
| Insurance providers | To log rental protection and insurance products. |
| Property professionals (such as an approved valuer) | For independent valuations and reports |
| Maintenance contractors & utilities | To support household repairs, gas/electrical safety visits. |
| HM Land Registry | To register or remove any charges on the property. |
| Credit reference agencies | To prevent crime, verify identity. |
| Debt collection agencies | To manage and recover arrears (if needed) – Go to section 7b. |
| Direct Debit scheme | To process payments securely. |
| Fraud prevention agencies | To detect and investigate fraud and financial crime. |
| Financial Ombudsman Service and Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman | To investigate and respond to homebuyer complaints. |
| Law enforcement agencies | Where necessary to cooperate with criminal or other investigations. |
| Deposit Protection Scheme | To protect and return tenant deposits, as required by law. |
| Immigration Authorities (Home Office) | For Right to Rent compliance (if requested). |
| Electronic payment service providers | To manage payments. |
| Organisations providing data services to support us in managing our customer relationships and operating the business. | To process and administer the portfolio and keep our systems running, eg IT, analytics, hosting, CRM, and customer support. |
| Third parties involved in an extraordinary corporate transaction | Such as a merger or the sale of a business unit, including those who provide them with advice in the context of the transaction. |
| Meta Platforms Ireland Limited ("Meta Ireland") | For the creation of targeted audiences and personalised advertisements or web forms through which users can subscribe to commercial communications via the social network. |
| Google LLC. (or its subsidiaries) | For Google Ads services, personalised advertisements or web forms which users can subscribe to for commercial communications via the social network. |
| Suppliers of technical assistance services, call centre operators and customer service providers, agencies and providers of services of digital marketing and advertising | For reviews and ratings service providers, cookie providers, tracking technologies and web/email analytics services. These entities work on our behalf as data processors or independent data controllers, as appropriate. |
| Our IT infrastructure, including communication systems | To provide secure data storage and power our internal systems, such as our email and phone service. |
b. Our use of fraud prevention agencies (FPAs)
During the lifetime of your relationship with Own Homes, from application, monthly rental payments, savings, to purchasing the property, we verify your identity and complete checks to prevent fraud and money laundering.
These checks require us to process your personal data that we have collected for you, your legal representatives, or through third parties.
We process personal data such as your:
- Full name.
- Address.
- Date of birth.
- Contact details.
- Financial information.
- Employment details.
- Device identifiers, including IP address.
We may share your personal data with Fraud Prevention Agencies (FPAs), who are data controllers in their own right.
They, and we, may enable law enforcement agencies to access and use your personal data to detect, investigate and prevent crime.
We process your personal data in this way when it is in the public interest, or to prevent fraud and money laundering, and to verify identity. We do this to protect ourselves and to comply with UK law.
FPAs can hold your personal data for different periods of time. Your data can be held for up to six years if you are considered to pose a fraud or money laundering risk.
FPAs may store your personal data outside the UK. This may be in a country where your data is protected to UK standards, but if not, then the FPAs will ensure your data is protected.
8. Where we store your data (and transfers)
We store and process personal data in the Isle of Man, the UK, and the EEA.
If data is transferred outside these locations, we’ll ensure there are lawful safeguards in place (for example, UK IDTA or EU Standard Contractual Clauses, plus risk assessments and technical measures).
We use encryption, access controls, secure hosting, and regular reviews to keep your data safe.
9. How long we keep your data
We only keep your data for as long as needed to provide services, meet legal duties, and resolve disputes.
Typical retention periods:
| Data type | Retention | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| Enquiry & registrations | 24 months from last interaction | Legitimate interests |
| Customer journey records | Six years after your relationship ends | Legal obligation/HMRC/ contracts |
| Core tenancy records (e.g. safety certificates) | As required by law | Legal obligation |
| Analytics data | 26 months (Google default) | Legitimate interests |
When a retention period ends, we delete or anonymise your data securely.
10. Your rights
You have rights over your personal data. These include:
- Right to be informed – what we do with your data (this notice)
- Right of access – ask for a copy (Subject Access Request)
- Right to rectification – fix inaccurate or incomplete data
- Right to erasure – ask us to delete your data (in certain cases)
- Right to restrict processing – pause some uses of your data
- Right to data portability – receive data in a portable format
- Right to object – object to certain uses (e.g., direct marketing)
- Rights related to automated decision-making/profiling – ask for a human review where legally applicable
- Right to withdraw consent – where we rely on consent (e.g., marketing)
To exercise your rights, email hello@ownhomes.com. We’ll respond as soon as we can and within legal timeframes.
11. Complaints
If you’re unhappy with how we handle your data, please contact us first, we’ll do our best to resolve it quickly and fairly: hello@ownhomes.com.
You also have the right to complain to your regulator:
- UK – Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO): www.ico.org.uk
- Isle of Man – Information Commissioner: www.inforights.im
12. Links to other sites
Our website and app may link to other sites (e.g., housebuilders, lenders). We don’t control their privacy practices. Please check their privacy notices before sharing your data.
13. Data Protection Officer
Data protection contact at Own Homes can be contacted by:
Post: 8 St. George’s Street, Douglas, Isle of Man, IM1 1AH
Email: hello@ownhomes.com
(When we appoint a formal Data Protection Officer, we’ll update this section with their details.)
14. Changes to this policy
We may update this privacy notice from time to time. We’ll post any changes here with a new “Last updated” date, and we’ll email registered users about any material changes.
