To buy your council home you must be a secure tenant and have been a public sector tenant for at least 3 years. If you have had breaks as a tenant you can include previous tenancies in your total.
When we get your application we will visit your home and make a valuation at the current market rate. As a tenant, you are currently (from 21 November 2024) able to get a maximum discount of £38,000 (in the South East) to help buy the home you are currently renting from us. The discount will depend on the type of property and the time that you have been a tenant. It is also subject to changes.
- If you sell your home within 5 years, you will need to pay at least some of the discount back.
- If you sell your home within 10 years you will need to offer it back to us for purchase.
You may not be able to buy your home if:
- Your property is specifically suitable for elderly or disabled tenants.
- You are in breach of any part of your tenancy.
- You have outstanding possession orders.
- You have problems with debt.
The Leasehold Advisory Service is government-funded and provides independent advice for leaseholders.
Government right to buy your home summary booklet.
Your Right to Buy Your Home PDF – a guide for tenants of councils and registered providers, including housing associations.
Thanet District Council will no longer be responsible for the maintenance of your home. You will need to do your own repairs, or pay someone else to do them.
If you have a mortgage, you must keep up repayments or your home could be repossessed by your mortgage provider.
For a leasehold property (flat or maisonette), you will need to pay a service charge to Thanet District Council to pay for repairs to the communal areas and maintenance to the building etc. Buildings insurance is covered by your service charge but you will need to buy your own contents insurance.
If your property is freehold (a house) you will need to buy both buildings and contents insurance.
Don’t forget the one-off costs when buying a home including stamp duty, survey and solicitor’s fees.
You must be sure that you understand the costs and responsibilities associated with home ownership e.g. mortgage payments, service charges, maintenance of the property.
If you buy a leasehold property, you could also be liable for large one-off payments for building repairs. More information about leasehold properties can be found here.
PermalinkThanet District Council will carry out any repairs that we have responsibility for in your home, until you have bought it. While your application is in progress we will not be able to do any large repairs that would normally be part of a repairs programme. This is because it will affect the value of your home.
Once you have bought your home Thanet District Council will no longer be responsible for any repairs.
PermalinkOnce you have purchased your home, you should remember that you will need to budget for the following outgoings:
- Your mortgage
- Service charges (leasehold properties)
- Building insurance, life assurance and mortgage payment protection insurance.
- Council tax.
- Water, sewerage, gas, electricity and other utility services.
You will also need to keep your property maintained, as this will no longer be the responsibility of the council. If you have a leasehold property you may need to pay towards any major works to the building.
PermalinkIf you currently rent a garage from Thanet District Council you should let us know when you submit your Right to Buy application. This is because you will be liable to pay VAT for the licence from the date of purchase of your property.
PermalinkAs your landlord we will provide you with factual information about the Right to Buy scheme. If you would like any information from us, please contact our Homeownership Officer by email myhome@thanet.gov.uk or call 01843 577575
Before you decide, we recommend that you get legal advice and visit the government’s Right to Buy website. If you decide home ownership is right for you, their advisers can help you with the process and the next steps.
PermalinkYou may not be able to buy the property if you or someone who is joining in the Right to Buy with you:
- is subject to a bankruptcy order
- has a bankruptcy petition pending
- is an undischarged bankrupt
- has arranged with a creditor the terms of which remain unfulfilled
- benefits from a moratorium period under a debt relief order
- is subject to a suspension period under an order made under section 121A of the Housing Act 1985 due to antisocial behaviour
- is in breach of any part of the tenancy
- you have problems with debt
You may not be able to buy the property if the property :
- is specifically suitable for elderly or disabled tenants.
- has a final demolition order in place.
As your landlord we must say yes or no within 4 weeks of getting your application (8 weeks if you’ve had a tenancy with any other social housing landlord and TDC has been your landlord for less than 3 years). If we say no, we must tell you why.
If we agree to sell, we’ll send you an offer. We must do this within 8 weeks of saying yes if you’re buying a freehold property, or 12 weeks if you’re buying a leasehold property.
Applying for a reduction because of a delay:
Fill in the ‘Initial notice of delay’ form (RTB6) and send it to us.
We must then either move the sale along within 1 month or send you a ‘counter notice’. The counter notice will say that we’ve already replied or explain why we cannot speed things up.
If we do not reply within a month of getting the RTB6, fill in the ‘Operative notice of delay’ form (RTB8). This means that any rent you pay while you’re waiting to hear from us could be taken off the sale price.
You can do this each time we are late getting back to you.
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