Voluntary Right to Buy

On Thursday 13th August 2018 the Government launched its new Voluntary Right to Buy pilot scheme for the Midlands.

When will the VRTB pilot start?

The pilot commenced on the 16^th August 2018. The Government are inviting tenants who are interested in the scheme to enter into a ballot which will be open until the 16^th September 2018. To register your interest and find out more about the scheme visit the Government’s Right to Buy website on the right hand side of this page.

Am I eligible for VRTB?

You could be eligible for a discount under the Voluntary Right to Buy scheme if:

You are over the age of 18.
You have the Right to Reside in the UK.
You are not a shared ownership tenant.
You have been a public sector tenant (usually of a council or a housing association) for at least three years and have been the tenant of the property that you would like to purchase for at least one year.
You are not eligible for the Preserved Right to Buy scheme (if you transferred your tenancy to the Trust from Telford & Wrekin Council on stock transfer in March 1999 and you have remained a tenant of the Trust).
The property is your only home at the point of sale.
You do not own another property – if you do, it must be sold before you complete the purchase of the Trust property.
You do not have any current or former rent arrears.
Your home is not due to be demolished or disposed of.
You don’t have any outstanding possession orders.
You are not subject to bankruptcy proceedings or unfulfilled credit arrangements, and nor is anyone else hoping to buy your home with you.
You are not subject to an anti-social behaviour order or notice of intent to seek possession for breach of tenancy conditions.
You are not subject to any legal proceedings.
You don’t live in a property that is let under the following tenancies:
- Rent to Buy
- Mortgage Rescue
- Market Rent
- Introductory or other Assured Shorthold (other than a Localism Act fixed term tenancy)
- Licence

Full eligibility is set out on the Government website(link on the right hand page).

The Trust will check your details against all of the criteria to ensure you are eligible.

Is my home eligible for VRTB?

The Trust has a policy which exempts certain property types from the scheme. These properties include:

Supported housing and extra care schemes
Properties that have been identified in future disposal or demolition plans
Properties subject to planning obligations which restrict sale
Properties within certain blocks of flats where the Trust has a 100% ownership of the freehold and flats
Properties where the Trust has invested more in the last 15 years than the open market value of the property.

What happens if my property is not eligible for VRTB?

Other than tenants in supported housing or extra care schemes, if your home has been exempted from the scheme you will be given an opportunity to ‘port’ your discount and use it to purchase another vacant home, either from the Trust or another landlord taking part in the pilot.

How does porting work?

If your property is exempted from the VRTB and you decide that you would like to seek an alternative property the Trust will help you.

Full details of the Trust’s exemption and porting policy can be found within our Right to Buy Policy.

If me and my home are both eligible will the sale go ahead?

Before being able to request an application form from the Trust you must first enter the ballot by registering through the Government’s Right to Buy website on the right hand side of this page.

If you are successful in the ballot you will receive a unique reference number (URN).

There is a limited amount of funding provided by the Government for this scheme, and so the number of URN’s will be restricted. It is important to note that even if you are successful in the ballot, there are no guarantees that you will be able to purchase your property.

The URN must be included on your application form and the Trust cannot accept applications without it.

Additional Voluntary Right to Buy (VRTB) Information

During the application process you will be required to pay an admin fee of £250.00 which is only refundable if the sale completes. Please pay attention to the timescales for this process as failure to comply may mean that your application is cancelled and you lose your payment.

If you choose to sell or sublet the property within the first 5 years of purchase you will have

to repay some or all of the Voluntary Right to Buy discount, according to the terms set out in the sales contract.

Additional applicants

You may apply to purchase your home with up to three family members over the age of 18 who are able to evidence that they have lived in the property as their sole and principal home for at least 12 months prior to submitting the application form to the Trust. Family members who don’t live in the property cannot be included on the application. If a family member owns another property, it must be sold before you complete the purchase of the Trust property.

A ‘family member’ is:

The tenant’s spouse, civil partner or someone who lives with the tenant as is they were their spouse or civil partner.
The tenant’s parent, grandparent, child, stepchild, grandchild, brother, sister, aunt, uncle, nephew or niece.
The parent, grandparent, child, stepchild, grandchild, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, nephew or niece of the tenant’s spouse or civil partner.

Once the application has been verified and approved by the Trust you cannot add or remove any applicants without cancelling the application. If you have already paid the £250.00 fee, this will not be refundable.

The agreement of any tenant who does not want to buy must be obtained before you apply to purchase your home. They should sign the Declaration in Section 4 of the application form. Their tenancy will end when you buy the property.

Repairs and maintenance

Once you make the application any improvements or repairs that are due to be carried out will be cancelled except where the work is required by law to keep the property safe and weather-tight. The reason for this is that the valuation is based on the date the application was made and any improvements or repairs after that date would affect the valuation. Any repairs outstanding at the time the purchase is completed will become the responsibility of the purchaser(s).

Warning - Is someone trying to advise you to buy your home?

If you are considering buying your home, application forms and advice on how to complete them are available from the Trust.

If you need advice on any aspect of purchasing your home, contact the Trust first. If you are approached by a person or a company offering to help you buy your home please talk to the Trust or CAB before signing anything. Some companies have hidden charges which you will end up paying, or you may end up purchasing financial products which you did not want or need.

You should also obtain impartial financial and legal advice. Buying your home is a big decision. It’s a good idea to find out if you can afford to purchase and maintain your home before you make an application.

You can get free information and advice from:

The Governments Right to Buy website: (link on the right hand side), helpline: 0300 123 0913
The Right to Buy agents – a free, impartial source of information funded by the Government. You can phone them on 0300 123 0193 or contact them via the website on the right hand side.
: https://righttobuy.gov.uk/agent-service/
Your local Citizens Advice

What is the process?

Visit the Midlands Right to Buy website to register your interest in the ballot for the pilot and obtain your unique reference number (URN).
Contact the Trust to obtain the application form for VRTB which you will then need to complete within four weeks of receiving your URN. Remember to include your URN. It is a good idea to keep a copy of the completed form.
Within four to eight weeks we will review your application form and evidence you have provided. We may then ask for further information. Once we are satisfied with the information you have provided we will contact you confirming whether you have the Voluntary Right to Buy and whether your property is available for purchase under our Right to Buy policy, this can be found under the links on the right hand side.
If your property is excluded by our policy but you are eligible, we will offer you the opportunity to port your discount to an alternative property
If we accept your application and your property is available to buy we will notify you and you will then need to arrange an appointment to bring in documents, pay an application fee for £250 and select a surveyor. You need to arrange this within 10 working days of receiving the acceptance letter. If you do not contact us within this time your application will be cancelled.
Please note that the application fee is only refundable at the point of completion of the purchase.
At the appointment you will be asked to select a surveyor to undertake the valuation of your home. We have a list of two participating Royal institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) qualified surveyors for you to choose from.
Upon completion of the valuation, we will send you an offer notice. This offer notice will set out:
- The RICS qualified surveyor’s valuation of your property*, your discount and the price you’ll pay.
- Any structural problems the landlord knows about.
- Any terms and conditions of the purchase.
- For leasehold properties only, your offer notice will also include an estimate of the service charges that you will need to pay over the next 5 years.

*If you are not happy with the valuation you can ask for a second valuation at your own cost from another RICS qualified surveyor from the approved list. You may want to check the costs of a second valuation before proceeding.

You will then need to decide whether you want to go ahead with VRTB you have up to
four weeks to accept the offer. It is during this time that you will need to arrange a mortgage or loan if you need one, get a survey, instruct a solicitor and get independent financial and legal advice if you have not already done so. It is important that you understand all costs involved before you accept the offer.
If you do not respond within four weeks with the solicitors details your application may be cancelled.
Once you are happy with our terms and have arranged payment for your home you can complete the purchase. It is usually during this time that you pay any stamp duty if applicable and finalise and sign all paperwork. Your solicitor should advise you and help with arrangements for these final stages of the process. This conveyancing stage should be completed within 12 weeks.

Timeline of a successful application:

Obtain URN: four weeks
Submit application to the Trust: four weeks
Application accepted: 10 days
Interview arranged, provide documents, select surveyor, pay £250 fee: 12 weeks
Offer price received: four weeks
Accept offer, appoint a solicitor: 12 weeks
Sale completes, you are a home owner!