Non Standard Mortgages - Right To Buy
Other Home Ownership Schemes
If you do not have the Right to Buy then you may wish to
explore these other schemes which can help you make the
move into home ownership:
Right to Acquire - This scheme was introduced in
the Housing Act 1996, and gives certain tenants of Registered
Social Landlords (e.g. housing associations) a statutory
right to buy their home at a discount, generally between
£9,000 - £16,000 depending on the local authority area.
It only applies to RSL properties built or purchased with
public funds or transferred from a local authority after
1 April 1997, subject to certain exceptions. Eligible tenants
must have spent a total of two years as a public sector
tenant. The discount is funded by a grant from the Housing
Corporation. For further information on the scheme contact
your RSL.
Voluntary Purchase Grant Scheme - The Voluntary
Purchase Grant Scheme (VPG) was introduced in April 1996.
Tenants of Registered Social Landlords (RSLs) in properties
built before 1 April 1997 who do not qualify for the Right
to Acquire may be able to buy the home they rent at a discount.
The scheme does not apply to all tenants, as it is up to
the RSL whether it takes part in the scheme and some properties
may be excluded.
Cash Incentive Scheme - The objectives of the Cash
Incentive Scheme are to release local authority accommodation
for letting to those in housing need and to encourage owner
occupation. The scheme works by the payment of a grant to
a tenant to assist them buying a property in the private
sector. It is up to each local authority to decide whether
to run a CIS scheme and tenants have no mandatory right
to a grant. The size of grant payable is set by local authorities
themselves, but must be within parameters set by the Department
- up to 80% of the average Right To Buy discount for London,
South East and Eastern regions and £10,000 elsewhere. All
grants must be means tested.
Starter Home Intiative - This SHI was one of a number
of proposals included in the Housing Green Paper in recognition
of the difficulties faced by key workers on low income when
purchasing a house in high demand, high price areas. The
Starter Home Initiative is expected to help around 10,000
key workers, particularly nurses, teachers and the police
to buy homes in urban and rural areas where high prices
would otherwise prevent them from living in or near to the
communities they serve.
In addition, there are a number of shared ownership schemes
such as the Homebuy scheme, which are outlined in the next
section.
