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How it works

Social HomeBuy offers eligible tenants the chance to buy a share of the market value of their current home as well as benefit from a discount of between £9,000 and £16,000 depending on the location.

Not all local councils or housing associations offer the scheme. You need to check with your local council or housing association whether they offer the scheme or whether your home is included.

• Find your local council

Tenants can buy a minimum 25 per cent of the value of the property and pay a rental charge of not more than three per cent of the market value of the remaining equity owned by the landlord. The amount of discount you receive will be in proportion to the share of the property you buy.

Examples
If a council property was valued at £240,000 and a tenant bought a 50 per cent share, the landlord’s charge at three per cent would be £3,600 and would work out as £300 per month.
If you are eligible for a total £10,000 discount from your council/social landlord and you wish to buy 50 per cent of a property worth £200,000, the discount you would get on your share would be £5,000.

The discount is currently only available on the first share you buy, so buying as big a share as possible in the first instance will mean you can take advantage of a bigger discount. There is no maximum value so you could buy 100 per cent of the property with the full discount.

From April 2008 new purchasers will be entitled to a discount on any further shares they buy, not just on the initial share. So in the example above, if you bought a further 25 per cent, you would receive a further discount of £2,500.

Who can apply

Social HomeBuy is only available to you if:

• you are a local authority or housing association tenant and your landlord is offering the scheme
• you live in an eligible property
  
• you have been a tenant for a minimum of two years (or five years if you became a tenant after 18 January 2005)

If you have a joint tenancy, up to three people can apply together provided they all live in the property together. You may also be able to count previous council tenancies even if they are not continuous.

You will not be able to apply if:

• you have an assured shorthold tenancy, licence or a long lease
• you have been issued with a suspension order relating to anti-social behaviour
• you are undergoing bankruptcy proceedings
• you have been issued with a court order that means that you must leave the property

• Detailed eligibility information from the Housing Corporation (opens new window)
• Find out more about the different types of tenancy read - 'Private rent and tenancies' (opens new window)

How to apply

Applications must be made directly to your landlord (the local council or a housing association) If you are a local authority tenant contact your local council. The Housing Corporation has a list of all housing associations - also known as Registered Social Landlords (RSLs).

The link below will allow you to search for the contact details of your housing association by name, type and registered number.

• Find your local council
• Find your housing association with the Housing Corporation (opens new window)