Voluntary Right to Buy
What is Voluntary Right to Buy?
If you’ve been with PA Housing for more than 3 years, you might be eligible for the brand new phase of the government’s Voluntary Right to Buy pilot. The scheme may make it possible for you to buy your home from us, with a discount on the market value of up to £80,900 (the longer you have been one of our customers, the higher discount you may be eligible for).
Although the original Right to Buy scheme was initiated back in 1980 and reinvigorated in 2012, the much newer Voluntary Right to Buy has made the programme more accessible. Where before (under Right to Buy), only council and ex-council properties were eligible for the discount, the Government and the National Housing Federation have proposed the Voluntary Right to Buy so that the discount is available to housing association residents.
What’s more, PA Housing has been able to set some of the parameters for our participation on Voluntary Right to Buy – these are contained in our
An update:
The ballot for the Voluntary Right to Buy Midlands pilot has now closed.
No further entries will be accepted. Tenants who registered have been notified of the results by email, and all Unique Reference Numbers – enabling tenants who were successful in the ballot to apply to their housing association to buy their home – have been issued. Any further updates will be posted here.
Am I eligible for VRTB?
Voluntary Right to Buy was first piloted in London, and that initiative ended in January 2017. This VRTB pilot is phase two and is valid only for properties in the Midlands. Phase two will run for 2 years.
So, if you are a customer in the Midlands, you might be eligible. It also depends on the following:
- You must have a secure/assured tenancy
- You must have been a PA Housing customer for three years or more
- You must not have any arrears/debt or any outstanding notices.
The government has committed to extend the Right to Buy to housing associations across England in a national scheme. We do not have specific timelines for this at this stage.
Shared owners are not eligible for the scheme.
Can I buy the home I’m in now?
According to the government guidelines, most tenants that are eligible for the VRTB discount will be able to use it to buy their current home. However, there might be exceptions – you can read more about them in Owning your Home guide
If you’re eligible for the scheme but unable to purchase your current home, you might not be out of luck. The latest pilot allows for tenants to apply their discount to another eligible property.
For more details on Voluntary Right to Buy,
More information
What if I'm not eligible?
If you find that you are not eligible for the Voluntary Right to Buy scheme PA Housing also operate Preserved Right to Buy and Right to Acquire.
Preserved Right to Buy
Some tenants in England whose home used to be owned by a local authority, but was transferred to another landlord (e.g. a housing association) whilst they were living in it, may have the Preserved Right to Buy.
Right to Aquire
Allows housing association tenants in England to buy their home at a discount if the property was bought or built by the housing association after the 31 March 1997. Discount of between £9,000 or £16,000 are available depending on the local authority.
Would you like to know more?
If you are interested in finding out if you might be eligible, please get in touch
