The Right to Buy and Right to Acquire are schemes that allow tenants to buy their homes at a price lower than the full market value.
Do you qualify?
If you were a tenant prior to May 1995 you may have the Right to Buy your home. If your home was built with public funds after April 1997 you may have the Right to Acquire your home.
There are exceptions for both schemes.If you are interested in buying your home please contact our Home Ownership Team on 01628 543082 to find out if you qualify.
Offers of help with buying your home
Beware of companies offering to help you buy your home, and never sign any documents without getting independent advice. These companies may charge you a fee for this work. If you think you may be able to afford to buy your home and want to consider applying you can get free advice from us, or from the Citizens’ Advice Bureau.
Discount
Tenants who qualify to buy their home can do so at a price lower than the full market value. The maximum level of discount you are entitled to depends on the local area you live in and ranges from £16,000 to £38,000 off the market value of the property you live in. You will only be able to purchase under the scheme if your house or flat is your only home and is self-contained.
You cannot buy your home if?
If you have not kept to the terms and conditions of your tenancy agreement or you do not qualify under these two schemes you will be unable to buy your home.
To download a leaflet about Right to Buy please click here: Right to Buy Leaflet
You apply to us for an application form and we will arrange to meet with you and explain the application process and offer you help to complete the application form.
After checking to confirm the information you have supplied is correct, we will let you know if the purchase can go ahead and we will arrange for your home to be valued.
Once we have the valuation, we will send you an offer telling you what price you will have to pay for the property and outlining the terms and conditions of the purchase. You will have three months to decide if you wish to complete the purchase or withdraw from it.
If you do not complete the purchase within eight weeks of receiving our reminder to reply to our offer, we will cancel your application. If we do not comply with the time scales set down by the government to process your application you can send us an Initial Notice of Delay form, which we must respond to.
If you accept our offer to buy the property you will need to:
- Instruct a solicitor to handle the legal side of buying your home. Before employing anyone, always ask how much their advice will cost.
- Arrange a mortgage, unless you have savings to buy the property.
- Consider whether you wish to have the property surveyed. This will tell you if there are any significant defects with the property.