Preserved Right to Buy and Right to Acquire
Preserved Right to Buy
If you are a tenant who transferred from East Staffordshire Borough Council (in March 2001), you may have the Preserved Right to Buy.
What is the difference between the Right to Buy & Preserved Right to Buy?
An assured tenant of a registered provider does not have the Right to Buy. The Right to Buy is only for tenants who rent from a Local Authority (for example South Derbyshire Council)
However, if they were previously a secure tenant of a local authority and became an assured tenant because ownership of their home was transferred to a registered provider, they may have what is known as the Preserved Right to Buy. This only applies if they were living in their home when it was transferred. It can also apply if they then move to another property owned by the new landlord.
The ‘Preserved’ right only remains if they continue to rent from Trent & Dove Housing
Trent & Dove Housing tenants can apply for the Preserved Right to Buy if their tenancy began on or before the 26th March 2001 when we took over the housing stock from East Staffordshire Borough Council. These tenants are known to us as Transferring Tenants.
A tenant cannot buy their home if they have one of the following orders against them:-
- Possession Order with a fixed date – including Suspended Possession Order
- Ground Two Criminal Nuisance Order
- Bankruptcy Order
- Demotion Order
Additional Family Members Sharing the Preserved Right to Buy
Tenants may be able to exercise the right jointly with members of their family who have lived with them for the past 12 months or with their husband/wife.
The Discount
The Right to Buy scheme gives tenants a discount on the market value of their home. The longer they have been a tenant, the more discount they get. The maximum discount you can get for this area is £87,200. The maximum discounts increase on 6 April each year if the Consumer Price Index increases. If the Index does not increase, the discounts will remain the same.
Qualifying Period
Houses
Tenants can get a discount of 35% after 3 years tenancy. It is also 35% after 4 and 5 years tenancy. For each extra year after that, they get another 1% for each year of tenancy up to a maximum of 70%.
Flats
Tenants can get a discount of 50% after 3 years tenancy. It is also 50% percent after 4 and 5 years tenancy. For each extra year after that, they get another 2% cent for each year of tenancy, up to a maximum of 70%.
Whatever percentage you the tenants are eligible for; their discount cannot be greater than £87,200.
The qualifying period for discount can include time spent in different homes and with different landlords. This doesn’t have to be continuous, so long as it was a public sector tenancy.
Right to Acquire
The Right to Acquire is very similar to the Preserved Right to Buy in terms of the process and an assured tenant can apply if they have been a tenant for a minimum of 3 years with a public sector landlord.
The Right to Acquire is available to Trent & Dove tenants who did not transfer from East Staffordshire Borough Council in March 2001 and their tenancy began after this date.
Discount
The discount however is fixed at £9,000 for this area and does not increase depending on how long they have had a tenancy for.
Exemptions
If the property that the tenant lives in is within a ‘rural’ area the Right to Acquire cannot be exercised
Some examples of local rural areas are:-
Newton Solney, Yoxall, Ridware, Woodville, Willington, Rocester, Mayfield, Melbourne, Repton, Branston, Ravenstone, Church Leigh (within Leigh), Abbots Bromley, Some areas within Barton under Needwood
The tenant cannot buy a property through the Right to Acquire if the property was built using only Trent & Dove Housing funds (no grant).