Right to buy

About Right to Buy

The Right to Buy gives secure council tenants the opportunity to buy their home with a discount off the full market value of the property, subject to certain criteria.

Any land let together with your home (for example, gardens and garages) will normally be treated as part of your home.

If you sell the property within the first five years of buying, you will have to repay us all or some of the discount.

There are costs involved in purchasing your home that we are unable to help with, such as:

• mortgage repayments
• leaseholder charges
• insurance
• repairs and maintenance

Remember, buying your home is a big decision. If you haven’t done so already, you should get impartial financial and legal advice before buying.

For legal matters contact your local Citizens Advice Bureau.

For budgeting and financial advice, contact the Money Advice Service: 0300 500 5000.

The Right to Buy is a central government policy and they provide a range of information about how the scheme works on the Gov.uk website:

• Thinking of buying your council flat?
• Right to buy - buying your council home
• Right to buy discount calculator
• Right to Buy summary booklet

What happens if I change my mind?

You may withdraw your application for the Right to Buy Scheme at any time during the process. This will not affect your right to re-apply in the future.

Request to withdraw your application

Who has the Right to Buy?

To qualify for Right to Buy you must have three years secure tenancy with Norwich City Council, or another qualifying landlord, such as:

• another council
• some housing associations
• the Forces
• other public bodies.

You may be able to buy your home with members of your family who have lived with you for the past 12 months, or someone who is a joint tenant with you.

You may not be able to buy your council home if:

• you have with less than three years qualifying tenancy
• you live in sheltered housing or a disabled development scheme
• your property has been adapted to meet a specific health need
• you do not have a secure tenancy
• your tenancy is granted under homeless legislation
• you are an undischarged bankrupt
• you have a bankruptcy petition pending against you
• you have made an arrangement with creditors (people you owe money to) and you still owe them money
• you are subject to a court order

Apply to buy your home

If you are eligible to buy your home under the Right to Buy scheme, you will need to complete and send us an application form.

Right to Buy application on Gov.uk

Alternatively, you can request a form from the home ownership team on 0344 980 3333.

Whether you complete the form online or download it, you will need to print and sign it before returning it to us:

Home ownership team
Norwich City Council
City Hall
NR2 1NH

What happens next

Following receipt of your application form, we will send an acknowledgement by post. Usually within four weeks a letter is sent confirming your Right to Buy or rejecting your application.

Once you have applied to buy your home and we have agreed, the property will be valued by us.

We will not carry out improvements to your home that are likely to increase its value after we’ve received your right to buy application. Your home will therefore be removed from any planned maintenance programs as soon as your application is received. These include work such as window and door replacement, bathroom and kitchen upgrades, heating upgrades and rewiring. Once you submit your application, we will no longer carry out routine, day to day repairs.. We will continue to carry out emergency repairs only to your property while your application is active.

An offer letter confirming your details and the purchase price is sent within eight weeks of this if it is a house or 12 weeks if it is a flat or maisonette.

You will be given 12 weeks to decide how you wish to proceed and you should inform us by selecting one of the three options on the last page of the offer document.  We recommend that you employ a solicitor to handle the legal requirements of your purchase.

If you disagree with the valuation you may ask for the District Valuer to carry out a revaluation. This office is separate from us and their decision is final. If the District Valuer’s valuation is higher than our original valuation, you will have to accept it or withdraw your application to buy.

Please note that once you are ready to proceed with purchasing your property, there are set time scales to complete the process.

We will send you warning notices advising of the deadlines which apply to your purchase.  If you are unable to complete within these timescales, your application will be cancelled.

It will help things to go smoothly if, throughout the process, you or your solicitor keeps us informed on your circumstances, such as how you are progressing with raising the money, or any other issues that may delay the purchase.

Most sales go through quickly, but sometimes there are problems or delays. If you consider that we are not keeping to the legal timescales, you have the right to challenge us and should get further details from them.

Right to Buy discounts

A discount is applied to the purchase price of the property, depending on the type of property and how long someone has been a qualifying tenant for.

From 21 November 2024, the maximum discount available is £34,000.

To calculate the discount, a percentage figure is applied to the value of the property. As of 26 May 2015 the following discount levels apply:

• 3 years: 35% discount for a house and 50% discount for a flat
• 4 years: 35% discount for a house and 50% discount for a flat
• 5 years: 35% discount for a house and 50% discount for a flat
• 6 years plus – add 1% per year for houses (up to 70% or the cash maximum – whichever is lower), add 2% per year for flats (up to 70% or the cash maximum – whichever is lower).

Example:

An applicant lives in a house valued at £210,000 with a tenancy history of 20 years.
Qualifying % = 35% (up to 5 years tenancy) + 15 x 1% = 50%

Based on a property valuation of £210,000 x 50% = £105,000

In this case, the maximum discount of £34,000 is applied. Therefore the house would be offered for sale at £176,000.

Things that may affect your discount

Your discount will be less if your landlord has spent money building or maintaining your home:

• in the last 30 years - if your landlord built or acquired your home before 2 April 2012
• in the last 15 years - if you’re buying your home through Preserved Right to Buy, or if your landlord acquired your home after 2 April 2012.

You will not get any discount if your landlord has spent more money than your home is now worth.

You might get a lower discount if you previously purchased another home through Right to Buy.

If you have made improvements to your home yourself, make sure you inform your landlord (as part of the application form) so that they can reflect this in the valuation.

Right to Buy calculator

Use the online calculator to give you a rough guide to what discount you may be eligible for.

Right to Buy discount calculator

Buying your flat or house

House or bungalow

When buying a house or bungalow, you will purchase the freehold and own the property outright.

You will be responsible for the costs of all repairs and maintenance, regardless of the condition of the property when you bought it. Some freeholders may also have to pay service charges for the repair and maintenance of shared communal areas on an estate, for example, pathways, play areas and gardens. 

Council flat

Because flats are part of a larger building, when you buy a flat you usually purchase the leasehold, and we continue to own the block (the freehold). Owning the lease allows you and your successors to live in the property for a fixed period, usually 125 years. 

The freeholder is responsible for the upkeep of the building as a whole and any communal areas and facilities. All leaseholders have to pay a share of the our costs for this work – known as service charges. Your share is based on the number of flats or maisonettes in the block.

Service charges can be several hundred pounds each year, or much more if the block needs major repairs or maintenance, such as a new roof or windows, and other improvements. To get a rough idea of your service charges it is worth asking an existing leaseholder from your block, or you could contact your local residents’ or leaseholders’ association.

Your service charges can be composed of different kinds of work including:

• annual charges for day- to-day maintenance and building services
• major works service charges, payable as a lump sum when large-scale repair or if refurbishment is needed. These costs could be thousands of pounds

If you decide you want to buy your flat, we must give you an estimate of any service charges payable during the first five years of your lease. We cannot charge you more than the estimated ‘major works’ service charges during the first five years of your lease, except to take account of inflation. However, the annual charge can change during the first five years.

There is no limit on charges for repairs and improvements carried out after the first five years. Remember that you will have to pay major works service charges whenever your block is repaired.

Internal maintenance

You will be responsible for keeping the inside of your home in good repair.

Costs of buying your home

There are many costs associated with buying a property. As well as finding the purchase price (upfront in cash or with a mortgage), you will also have to maintain the property.

If you buy a leasehold property you will have to pay additional service charges.

Norwich City Council and the District Valuer won’t make any charges for processing your application to buy your home.

Mortgage

Unless you are going to buy your home with cash, you will need a mortgage (a loan to buy property). There are various kinds of mortgage which a bank, building society or an independent adviser can tell you about. You may have to pay for the cost of arranging the mortgage and will also have to pay a valuation fee.

The government has published some advice for tenants considering applying for a mortgage: First Homes Scheme: first-time buyer's guide (Gov,uk).

If you cannot keep up the repayments on your mortgage, the lender may go to court and ask to take over your home. We do not have to give you another tenancy if you lose your home in this way.

If you lose your income through unemployment, you will need to get information from Job Centre Plus about claiming income support against your mortgage.

Legal advice

You should employ a solicitor or a licensed conveyancer to look after the legal side of buying your home. The Citizens Advice Bureau can advise on local firms, and your local public library should have a list of the solicitors in your area and the type of work they do. Before employing anyone, always ask how much their advice will cost.

Survey

You should have a survey of your home carried out after you receive notice from us informing you of the sale price and conditions of sale. Make sure you find out the cost before you go ahead with the survey. You should consider either:

• A Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) Home Buyers’ Survey and Valuation. This is a report and valuation in a standardised format outlining all significant defects.
• A building survey. This involves a detailed examination of all the visible parts of the property. It is a good idea to undertake such a survey if the property is old, obviously in need of repair, or if you are considering making alterations. This type of survey may not be available if your home is a flat.

You can obtain more information about both of these surveys from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.

Registering ownership

When a sale is completed, you must pay the Land Registry to register you as the new owner; this will cost around £40.

Insurance

You will need to consider taking out insurance cover for your home and mortgage. There are four main types:

1. Buildings insurance - This is essential as it covers the full cost of rebuilding your home if it is destroyed by fire or some other incident. In the case of flats, we arrange this insurance and you will make a contribution. If you need a mortgage to help buy your home, the lender will insist that you have buildings insurance.
2. Contents insurance - You should insure the contents of your home against theft and other risks. If you currently have your home contents insurance from us this will end and you will have to arrange your own cover.
3. Life assurance - This will pay off your mortgage if you die before the end of the mortgage period. It means your family is not left with the heavy burden of mortgage debt.
4. Mortgage payment protection insurance - You need to think seriously about how you would meet your mortgage repayments
   if you lost your income, for example, through unemployment or ill health.In many cases, mortgage payment protection insurance will give you the security you need.

There are various insurance policies offering cover against these risks. The terms, level of cover and costs vary. It is a good idea to shop around for policies that best suit your needs.

Other regular costs of home ownership

Council Tax
This is a separate charge which we will bill you directly for whether you are a tenant or home owner. A small amount of tenants pay Council Tax as part of their rent. In these cases Council Tax will be paid as a separate bill when you buy your home.

Water charges
You may pay water charges as part of your rent, but if you buy your home you will have to pay directly to the water services company.

Gas/electricity charges
You may pay gas or electric charges as part of your rent. If you buy your home, you will have to pay directly to the services company.

Stamp duty
First time buyers will pay no stamp duty on properties worth up to £300,000.

Selling your home

If you want to sell your property within the first 10 years of ownership, you must offer it to us first.  

If you sell your property within five years of buying your home from us, you will normally have to pay us a percentage of the resale value.

This valuation does not include the value of any improvements you made after you purchased the property from us. The amount you will have to repay will be determined by the discount your received when you bought your property, expressed as a percentage of the value on which the sale was based.

For example, if the Right to Buy valuation was £150,000 and the discount was £60,000, the discount expressed as a percentage of the value is 40 per cent. If you sell your property within the first year for a price of £175,000 (without the price being increased by improvements), the maximum we can require you to repay is 40 per cent of that amount, being £70,000.

After every full year you own your home, the amount of discount you must repay decreases by one-fifth. So if in the above example you were selling your property three years after purchase, the amount of discount you would be expected to repay would be two-fifths of 40 per cent, or 16 per cent of £175,000 (£28,000).

The value of your home can go down as well as up.

For each complete year which has elapsed after the sale, the maximum amount you will have to repay is reduced by one-fifth. For example four fifths in the second year, three-fifths in the third year, two-fifths in the fourth year and one-fifth in the fifth year.

Right to Buy - buy back

1. Why do I have to offer my property back to the council?

All properties (freehold and leasehold) sold under Right to Buy legislation since 18 January 2005 contain a covenant which compels the owner, if the property is offered for sale within ten years of the original purchase, to offer the property back to us.

2. What do I need to do to offer my property to the council?

1. Download and fill out the Buy back / right of first refusal form. Save it to your device. Save again once completed.
2. Use the online Contact us form, to send it to us by selecting the 'all other enquiries' option from the drop-down list.
3. Add your details and upload the completed form as an attachment.

Alternatively, write to us at Norwich City Council, City Hall, Norwich, NR2 1NH, with the following information:

• A statement from the owner or trustee saying that they wish to dispose of the property
• The full postal address of the property being offered
• State there is a covenant regarding buy-back under Right to Buy legislation.
• Information about the type of property (eg ground floor flat, semi-detached etc), the number of bedrooms and details of the heating system
• Details of any improvements or structural changes made since purchasing from the council
• The open market value of the property
• An address where correspondence can be sent.

3. Does the council have to buy my property?

No. We will consider whether or not to buy back a property on an individual basis. The decision whether or not to buy back a property will be determined by the following factors:

• Capital funds available
• Housing need and demand for the type of property being offered within the area it’s located
• Additional costs for any refurbishment work being minimal (ie to bring the property up to the Norwich Standard)
• It represents value for money.

4. Can I offer the property to another Registered Provider (RP)?

No, but we may consult with and nominate another RP to purchase, if there is interest in the property being offered.

5. What happens once I have sent my request?

We aim to acknowledge your letter within five working days of receipt. Your request will then be considered in line with our policy. If we need additional information we will contact you.

We have to provide you with either an ‘acceptance notice’ or a ‘rejection notice’ within eight weeks of receiving your enquiry. If we fail to provide this within eight weeks you may dispose of the property in accordance with the regulations.

A rejection notice lasts for 12 months, after which time a new rejection notice must be issued before the property may be sold.

6. Can I appeal?

No. There is no right to appeal because we are not required to buy back any property that is offered.

7. Is it possible to sell my property to the council if it falls outside of the legislation?

If you purchased your property under the Right to Buy scheme before the 2005 legislation came into effect, or if you’ve owned the home for more than ten years, we may still be interested in buying it from you.

Please provide us with the information required under the above question ‘What do I need to do to offer my property to the council?’ and we will consider your property in the same way, as we would for any other Right to Buy – Buy Back.