Right to Buy FAQ
How to buy your home
How do I make an application to Right to Buy my property?
Contact the Home Ownership Team for an application pack or download the application form and information booklets on the Internet.
Who has the Right to Buy?
You may have the Right to Buy your home if you are a secure tenant with a minimum of two years tenancy (5 years for new tenants after 18th January 2005).
You may also qualify if you have a tenancy with another council, housing association or if you have lived in armed forces accommodation.
There are some instances where you may not be able to buy your home, which include housing suitable for elderly or disabled people.
How do I find out how much it will cost to buy my property?
You first need to apply to buy your property; you do this by completing a Right to Buy application form, which can be requested over the phone or on line. If you find it difficult to understand we can help you fill it in, we do not charge for this service.
How much discount will I get?
The longer you have been a tenant the more discount you will get. The discount allowed for a house starts at 32% after 2 years up to a maximum of 60% after 30 years. For flats the discount starts at 44% after 2 years and rises to 70% after 15 years (all discount is limited to a maximum of £26,000 for Oldham tenants). Any previous tenancies with other social landlords can count towards your discount.
Can my son/daughter/partner etc. buy my property for me?
As the tenant of the property you must be included in the purchase of the property. If a family members/partner etc. does not live at the property they cannot be included on the Right to Buy. Only people registered on the Council’s electoral role as living at the property for a period of not less than 12 months will be allowed to join you in the purchase. However, a family member/partner etc. who is not registered as living at your property can put up the finance for the purchase, but still will not be named on the sale as a joint purchaser.
How long will it take to buy my property?
From receiving your application to sending out your Offer Notice should take a maximum of 12 weeks for houses and 16 weeks for flats. You then have three months to decide if you want to accept the offer. On receipt of your Acceptance form, the Council Solicitor normally takes approximately 6 weeks to gather all of the information required by your Solicitor. On receipt of this paperwork your Solicitor should be in a position to agree a date for completion.
NB. This process can be delayed depending on your Mortgage Company/structural surveys etc.
What if I want to sell my property in the future? Right of first refusal
If you purchase your home on or after 18 January 2005, and you want to re-sell it within 10 years of your purchase, you will be required to offer the property to Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council. More information is available in the booklet “Your Right to Buy your home”.
Where a property has been sold under the Right to Buy, Oldham Council does not retain the title deeds. If you have bought your property with a mortgage or loan, your lender will retain the deeds. Your title deeds are important documents. If you hold the deeds to your property yourself, you should ensure that they are kept in a secure place.
Can you recommend a solicitor or bank/building society who will help me with my purchase?
It is not good policy to advise tenants on any particular company or lending institution as this could be seen as being biased against others. We would suggest that you shop around for the best deal and perhaps take advice from other family members and friends who may have had good service from a particular company.
For more information and guidance regarding purchasing your home, please read booklets “Your Right to Buy your Home” & “Thinking of buying a council flat?” We can provide you with these booklets or “Your Right to Buy your Home” is available on line at: The Department for Communities and Local Government (PDF).
What happens if I can’t keep up with my payments?
If you cannot keep up the repayments on your mortgage, and the mortgage company repossesses your home, First Choice Homes Oldham on behalf of Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council does not have to give you another tenancy.
If you become unemployed you would not usually receive Income Support immediately, and this payment may not cover the full amount of your mortgage payments.
What does Freehold and Leasehold mean?
If you buy a house with no communal services, you will buy the freehold and will own the property outright.
If you buy a flat or maisonette you will usually buy a long lease, this allows you and your successors to live in the property for a fixed time, usually 125 years. This means you are buying the right to occupy part of a larger building. This type of ‘ownership’ is called leasehold.
OTHER COSTS TO CONSIDER WHEN BUYING YOUR HOME
Mortgage
If you are not paying cash for your property, you will need a mortgage. We are unable to recommend a mortgage company to you but the Financial Services Authority (FSA) give out free information on the different types of mortgages available. You can telephone the FSA helpline on 0845 606 1234 or click on the link to their website below.
If your property is a Leasehold Flat/Maisonette, more information is available from the Leasehold Advisory Service on 0845 345 1993, alternatively you can go to their website
http://www.lease-advice.org/newintro.htm
One off costs
Legal
You should employ a solicitor or licensed conveyancer to assist you with the legal side of buying your home. Always ask them for an estimate of how much they will charge you for their services.
Surveyor
Although the Council’s Valuation Officer values your property, we always recommend that following receipt of your section 125 offer notice; you have your own survey done. In some cases your mortgage lender will arrange for a survey to be done – you will be charged for this.
If you are arranging your own survey and want advice, you can call the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors on 0870 333 1600 or visit their website at http://www.ricsfirms.com/
Insurance
You will need to take out buildings insurance, this is needed to cover the cost of rebuilding your home if it is destroyed by fire or some other incident. The insurance for flats/maisonettes is arranged for the whole block by the landlord (FCHO on behalf of Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council), this will make up part of your service charge.
Please note FCHO now offer contents insurance at competitive rates from AON Insurance Services, this cost will be added to your Service Charge invoice. Please contact The Home Ownership Team if you want further information.
Life Assurance is needed to pay off your mortgage if you die before your mortgage is paid. In many cases mortgage payment protection insurance will give you the security of knowing your mortgage payments are met if you were to lose your income due to unemployment or ill health.
Repairs and Maintenance
You will be responsible for all of the costs of repairs and maintenance once you buy your home. If the property is a flat/maisonette and therefore a leasehold property, you will have to pay your landlord (First Choice Homes Oldham on behalf of Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council) service charges to cover repairs/maintenance/grass cutting/communal lighting.