Reforming the Right to Buy
Applies to England
Read the full outcome
Detail of outcome
Government response to the consultation on Reforming the Right to Buy
The government response to the consultation sets out a proposed package of reforms to the Right to Buy scheme following the reduction in maximum cash discounts that were implemented in November 2024.
The consultation was open for 8 weeks between 20 November 2024 and 15 January 2025 and received 964 responses.
The response to the consultation sets out a proposed package of reforms that delivers for social housing tenants, councils and wider communities alike: ensuring tenants who have paid in rent over many years can still purchase their home whilst protecting much needed social housing stock and enabling councils to ramp up delivery of new homes.
The reforms include changes to eligibility requirements, further amends to the discounts 51茶馆 scheme, an exemption for newly built social housing for 35 years and expanding flexibilities for councils to spend their Right to Buy capital receipts. The government intends to bring forward legislation to implement the reforms when Parliamentary time allows.
Original consultation
Consultation description
Right to Buy is an integral way for social tenants to get on the property ladder; many of whom may not otherwise be able to access home ownership.
However, reform of Right to Buy is essential to better protect much-needed social housing stock, boost council capacity and build more social homes than we lose, supporting the government鈥檚 commitment to deliver the biggest increase in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation.
The consultation follows the reduction in maximum Right to Buy cash discounts, which was announced at Autumn Budget 2024, and asks for views on:
- 聽the qualifying criteria for tenants
- 聽initial and maximum discounts as a percentage of the property value
- 聽which types of properties should be exempted under the scheme
- 聽whether there should be increased restrictions on properties after sale
- 聽the replacement of homes sold under the Right to Buy
- 聽rules governing the use of Right to Buy receipts and how these could be simplified
Documents
Updates to this page
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Added government response to consultation on Reforming the Right to Buy.
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First published.