Right To Buy Restrictions: What Does The Future Hold?

The government’s Right to Buy scheme is something to consider if, as a council tenant, you’re keen to take that first step onto the property ladder.

Most tenants are able to apply to buy their council property if it’s their only or main home, if it’s self-contained, if you’re a secure tenant and if you’ve had a public sector landlord for three years (not necessarily consecutive).

However, those of you considering this as an option may want to keep an eye on Labour plans for the scheme, with the government now putting measures in place to scale back the policy.

For example, new-build social housing in England will now be exempt from the Right to Buy programme for 35 years, the BBC reports, with social tenants also having to live in their homes for significantly longer before being eligible to purchase the property at a discount.

The aim is to counteract the depletion of council housing stock (which the scheme has been blamed for, as governments have repeatedly failed to replace the properties sold, leading to a deficit).

This comes after the Budget in November last year saw the maximum discounts available to tenants reduced from £102,400-£136,400 to £16,000-£38,000.

Further, the government has confirmed that existing exemptions to the scheme will be maintained with bungalows, flats and larger homes not included.

And plans are in place to increase the period in which all or part of the associated discount must be repaid upon the sale of the property in question, rising from five to ten years.

It’s not yet clear when these measures will be rolled out, so if you are considering Right to Buy at the moment, now might be a good time to forge ahead with your plans if you can.

Right to Buy mortgage

Something to look into is a Right to Buy mortgage, where a lender will accept your discount as a deposit for your home. This means you can purchase your property without having to save up for a deposit, enabling you to get on the property ladder when you might have struggled to do so otherwise.

Before you try to apply, you need to know if you’re eligible or not – which we can help you with here at BR Needham. If you do qualify, then the next step is to think about the various pros and cons of purchasing a house in this way, making sure that you have a deep understanding of how these mortgages work and what your responsibilities will be.

If you still want to move forward, we can help by explaining the scheme clearly and answer any questions you might have, as well as helping you prepare your mortgage application, find the most appropriate products on the current market and make the application on your behalf, so you have less to worry about.

To find out more, get in touch with the team today.