Right to Buy or Acquire

The Preserved Right to Buy

You may be able to purchase your home under the Preserved Right to Buy. Only tenants who were tenants of West Wiltshire District Council and those whose home was transferred to us in 1996 or 2001, have a Preserved Right to Buy.

The Preserved Right to Buy follows the same guidelines as the Right to Buy for council tenants. The rules are set by the government and are therefore subject to change from time to time and at short notice.

Discounts are available, depending on the number of years you have been a tenant. Currently, you could get up to a maximum discount of 70% of the market value for both houses and flats.

There is however, a maximum amount of discount in cash terms, from 6 April 2017, the government increased this to £78,600. You will also not be able to buy your home for less than the amount we have spent improving, building or buying it in the last 15 years.

The Right to Acquire

The Right to Acquire allows eligible tenants to buy the home they currently rent at a discounted price. The discounts are much less generous than those under the Right to Buy, and are fixed by the government. The discount total can depend on where you live and if you have already received any discount to buy your first home in the past.

You cannot use the Preserved Right to Buy if:

• you're being made bankrupt
• a court has ordered you to leave your home

You cannot use the Right to Acquire if:

• you're being made bankrupt
• a court has ordered you to leave your home
• you live in a designated rural Parish
• Selwood Housing acquired your home before 1 April 1997
• Selwood Housing's debt on the property is equal to, or more than, the purchase price plus discount

Unfortunately, some homes such as those built for older people or people with disabilities, are not within the Preserved Right to Buy or the Right to Acquire.

For more information on the Preserved Right to Buy, including an eligibility quiz, visit the Own Your Home website.

For more information on the Right to Acquire, visit Right to Acquire: buying your housing association home (gov.uk).

Right to Acquire – Download the Right to Acquire information note

RtA Info, 151.4KB PDF