Buy your home
Buy your home
As a tenant, you can apply to buy your home.
If your tenancy started before 1 April 2003, then you’ll make a Right to Buy application.
Please complete the following and send both to us:
If your tenancy started after 31 March 2003, then you’ll make a Right to Acquire application.*
*Please be aware the Right to Acquire scheme can exclude certain properties from being bought. For example, if your home is within a Designated Rural Area, you cannot apply for the Right to Acquire.
Similarly, if your home is owned by the Letchworth Garden City Heritage Foundation, you cannot apply for the Right to Acquire. Please check with us before making an application
Please complete the following and send both to us:
Right to Acquire application form [PDF]
If you live in Letchworth your home might be on Letchworth Garden City Heritage Foundation (LGCHF) land. If it is, it means they are the freeholders not settle.
If you buy your home through right to buy, you’ll become a leaseholder and you’ll be able to purchase the freehold after two years of owning it. You’ll need to contact LGCHF, and us, to obtain quotations. You will not be eligible to purchase your home through Right to Acquire.
Discounts for Right to Buy
For more information regarding the discount you may be entitled to please review the information on the gov.uk website:
https://www.gov.uk/right-to-buy-buying-your-council-home/discounts
The maximum discount you will be offered is £87,200.
Discounts for Right to Acquire
For more information regarding the discount you may be entitled to please review the information on the gov.uk website:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/right-to-acquire-discounts-by-location
The discount you receive depends on where your property is located and which local authority you belong to
Once you’ve sent us both forms, we’ll review your application and let you know if you can buy your home in 28 days.
We’ll then arrange for an independent valuation of your home. A surveyor will make an appointment with you to inspect your home.
We’ll then send you a formal offer letter. This will include:
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- The current market value of your home
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- The discount you’ll receive
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- The final amount you’ll pay for your home
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- The number of days you have, to accept or reject the offer
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- If you accept the offer, you’ll need to arrange your mortgage and appoint a solicitor.
We’ll then work with you through the sale process.
We’ve also prepared some answers to Frequently asked questions about buying your home [PDF]
Costs of buying and owning your own home
There will be initial costs for taking up your Right to Acquire or Right to Buy.
These costs vary but may include:
Most residents will buy their home using a mortgage, costs can include:
- A fee if you use a mortgage broker/advisor to help you find a mortgage
- An arrangement fee to fix a mortgage rate with your mortgage lender
- A fee for your lender’s assessment of the market value of your property
- A survey fee for a professional inspection of your property (this is not the same as the assessment of market value undertaken by your mortgage lender). There are different types of survey with different costs depending on how detailed the survey is
In addition, you may want to review your own credit score to check if you would be eligible for a mortgage.
The deposit required can vary but usually a minimum of 5% of the property value is required by a mortgage lender.
a fee will be payable to use a solicitor or other legal representative to help you with buying your home.
You can find out more about this at: https://www.gov.uk/stamp-duty-land-tax
As a homeowner you will also have regular ongoing costs. These can include payments for:
- Mortgage or loan on your property
- Building insurance
- Contents insurance
- Life insurance
- Mortgage payment protection insurance
- Council tax
- Water, gas, electricity, broadband and other services
- Repairing and maintaining your property
- Service charges – you can find more information here: https://www.lease-advice.org/