Use our Right to Buy Mortgage calculator to work out how much you might be able to borrow to buy your council or housing association home. The calculator takes into account a number of factors including your income, the discounted Right to Buy price, any additional deposit you may have available, and the number of your dependents.

Please note that the figures provided by the calculator are for illustration purposes only. The exact amount you will actually be able to borrow may vary depending on different lenders’ assessment criteria and will be based on your individual circumstances, your income level and your credit history. To discuss Right to Buy mortgages with one of our expert advisers, call us today.

Right to Buy – what you need to know

Right to Buy has been around in one form or another since the 1970s. It is a scheme that allows secure tenants in council homes – and, more recently, some housing association properties – to buy the home they live in at a price discounted below market value. Over the years there have been many changes in the details of the scheme and the qualifying criteria for tenants who want to buy the council or housing association home they currently rent.

Under the current details of the scheme (correct as of April 2020) eligible council and housing association tenants in England can buy their home with a discount of up to £84,600, or £112,800 in London. Right to Buy is currently available in Wales, but in December 2017 the Welsh Assembly voted to ban future Right to Buy transactions at some point before May 2021. Right to Buy in Scotland ended in 2016, while a similar Right to Buy scheme (with a maximum discount of £24,000) is still available in Northern Ireland.

There are a number of qualifying criteria for both the property and the tenant. You can apply to buy your council home if:

• It is your only or main home.
• It is a self-contained property.
• You are a secure tenant.
• You have had a public sector landlord (for example a council/local authority, housing association or NHS trust) for 3 years – it doesn’t have to be 3 years in a row.

You may also have a Right to Buy if your home used to be owned by the council, but it was sold to another landlord (for example, a housing association) while you were living in it. This is called “Preserved Right to Buy”.

You can apply for Right to Buy either in your own sole name, jointly with someone who shares your tenancy (for example, your spouse or partner), or with up to three family members who have lived with you in the home for at least one year, even if they aren’t named on the tenancy agreement.

If you are thinking about buying the council home you live in, contact us to talk to one of our expert advisors about your Right to Buy options. We have many years of experience helping public sector tenants buy the home they rent, and can help you find the lender and mortgage that’s right for you.