Some 1.3m social housing tenants will get the Right to Buy from as early as next year – with housing associations getting compensation from taxpayers.
The Government has done a deal with the social landlords and National Housing Federation, which David Cameron described as historic.
He said: “Some people said this would be impossible and that housing associations would never stand for it. But today we have secured a deal.”
That deal does reveal that the housing associations were not afraid to use significant bargaining power.
The Government will compensate the housing associations for the Right to Buy discount.
Housing associations would retain the sales money to help them to reinvest in new homes.
They will also have the flexibility to replace stock with tenures such as shared ownership.
Housing associations will have discretion not to sell a particular property in some circumstances, for example where a property is in a very rural area and could not be replaced, or where it is adapted for special needs tenants.
However, even in these cases, housing associations would offer tenants the opportunity to use their discount to buy an alternative home from either their own or another association’s stock.
Comments (4)
How about fair play for the people who have paid their taxes and NOT benefits in kind for the select few who Cameron & Osborne think will vote for them as a result
An example of a Government not doing the right thing and buying votes as Maggie Thatcher did. I do not object to such properties being sold to the tenants but this must be at a full open market price. By all means help with some kind of beneficial mortgage arrangement.
I agree. Completely and utterly stupid policy that has almost certainly not been thought through and will bring little or no benefit to anyone.
I wounder if I could get a discount off of my Tax and NI for the next few years?
Upto 60% would be nice