Apply for Right to Buy
About the scheme
The Right to Buy scheme allows council tenants, who have over three years of public sector tenancy, the opportunity to purchase their council property.
This involves:
- A valuation (we require access to the property), and
- An offer letter (S125 notice) which will advise you of the level of discount and the price you will need to pay to purchase the property.
Read further information about the Right to Buy scheme.
Apply
To make an application, you need to:
- Apply on the Right to Buy website
- Complete the additional information form - Make sure you include all addresses and dates where you or your spouse have previously held council tenancies (even if they were not in this borough), as well as any temporary accommodation provided by the council and ensure that all applicants sign the form.
- Supply supporting documents - failure to provide these may result in your application being denied. These are:
- Copy of a household bill (dated within the past 3 months)
- Copy of your passport or driving licence
What happens next
If you submit a Right to Buy application the matter will be referred to a Housing Investigations Officer who will look further at how you are planning to finance the purchase of your home, and other aspects of the validity of your application if:
- You have recently been in receipt of benefits and/or
- You are found to be in breach of your tenancy agreement and/or
- Your application is believed to be unlawful for any other reason
If you would like any help or advice concerning your application, please ring the Home Ownership Team on 020 8871 6161. For independent advice you may also wish to contact the Citizens Advice Bureau or your solicitor.
Once your application has been accepted and your finances have been agreed, you will need to employ a solicitor to deal with the legalities of the transaction. We will not accept any cash funds from personal account(s). The expectation is that all the completion funds will be submitted via a UK based legal firm.
Voluntary sales
We discontinued Right to Buy voluntary sales from 1 August 2015.
Voluntary sales were cases that did not meet the usual criteria but proceeded under the discretion of the housing director.
Consumer Price Index (CPI) increase
As of 6 April 2024, Wandsworth tenants applying for the Right to Buy scheme benefit from an increase to the maximum discount in line with the percentage change in the CPI to £136,400.
These discounts will apply to applications which are received on or after 6 April 2024. The discounts do not apply retrospectively to applications made before 6 April 2024 when the maximum cash discount amount in London was £127,900.
Right to Part Buy
This voluntary scheme enabled eligible council tenants who qualified for the Right to Buy (but were unable to afford to purchase their council home outright) to buy a share of their property. The scheme was withdrawn from 10 October 2022.
Additional information
Find out more information on the government's Own Your Home webpage.