If you’d like to buy your home, you might be able to do so under one of two government schemes: Right to Buy or Right to Acquire.

Right to Buy

Right to Buy is a scheme for Local Authority customers. If you were previously a ‘secure’ tenant of North Somerset Council before 6 February 2006, when your home was transferred to Alliance Homes, you may qualify for the preserved ‘Right to Buy.’

This scheme gives customers a discount of up to £30,000 on their home, depending on the number of years you’ve lived in your home as well as the open market value.

  • To qualify, you’ll need to meet the following criteria:
  • You were a council tenant before when your home was transferred to Alliance Homes
  • You have been a social housing tenant for at least three years
  • You do not live in sheltered housing or other housing specifically for elderly or disabled people
  • Your home is not due to be demolished
  • You are not in debt
  • You do not have any cases of anti-social behaviour
  • In some instances, if your home is in a rural area, it may come with restrictions.

The government has put together a helpful guide on your right to buy your home.

Right to Acquire

Right to Acquire is for customers with an assured tenancy, who became tenants on or after 6 February 2025

The scheme offers a fixed discount of between £9,000 and £16,000 depending on the area you live in.

To qualify, you’ll need to meet the following criteria:

  • You must live in a home that was either built or acquired by Alliance Homes on or after 1 April 1997 using government or local authority funding
  • You must live in a home that was transferred from a local council to a housing association on or after 1 April 1997
  • You have been a social housing tenant for at least three years (this could be with us or another social housing provider)
  • You must live in a self-contained house or flat that is your only or main home
  • Your home must not be in a protected area
  • You must not live in supported housing or a home designated for people aged 60+
  • You must not be subject to a bankruptcy order, have a bankruptcy petition pending against you, or subject to a formal creditor’s agreement
  • You must not be subject to a possession order or have cases of anti-social behaviour against you.

The government has put together a helpful guide to the right to acquire.

You can get money advice and find more information about Right to Buy and Right to Acquire at www.moneyhelper.org.uk. 

Advice

If you’re unsure if you qualify or need help with which scheme you might be eligible for, please contact us by emailing leaseholdteam@alliancehomes.org.uk, calling us on 03000 120 120 or by completing a ‘Contact us’ webform.

Consider the cost of home ownership

If you are eligible for right to buy or right to acquire, it’s important you take the time to consider the cost of home ownership.

The decision to buy a home is one of the biggest financial decisions that you can make make and we want to make sure that you’re fully informed and have the help that you need.

Before you apply, we recommend that you consider:

  • Mortgage payments – these might be higher than your current rent. Using websites like www.rightmove.co.uk or www.zoopla.co.uk and searching for properties in your area can help give you an idea of how much your home could be worth and get an idea of possible mortgage costs.
  • Maintenance and repairs – as a homeowner, maintenance and repairs will be your responsibility.
  • Service charges – you may need to service charges. The cost of these charges vary depending on the property, scheme and neighbourhood
  • Other costs like utility bills, insurance and council tax can put extra pressure on your budget. 

Step-by-step guide to buying your home

Your guide to Preserved Right to Buy and the Right to Acquire.

Step 1: How to apply

First, make sure you’re eligible for either scheme and take the time to consider the cost of home ownership.

To apply, contact the leasehold team and let them know that you wish to buy your home. You can do this by:

The leasehold team will carry out an initial check to see if you and your home are eligible. If you are, they’ll send you an application form to complete.

Step 2: Processing your application

We’ll arrange an appointment to discuss your application form. You and any other person buying with you – up to three members of your family who live with you can be a part of the buying process – will be asked to provide signed photo ID and proof of address. This’ll also be an opportunity to ask any question about the buying process.

If you are a joint tenant and do not wish to buy, you must agree the sale and sign a form confirming this. Once the sale completes, your tenancy will end.

We will review your application within four weeks of your application being submitted. If your qualifying tenancy is with another landlord, this can take up to eight weeks.

If you can’t buy your home, we’ll explain why.

Step 3: Valuation

Once we accept your application, we’ll arrange for a local, independent and RICS-certified surveyor to carry out a formal open market valuation of your home.

Once the valuation is carried out, we’ll send you an offer notice within eight-weeks if your home is a house, or within 12 weeks if your home is a flat.

Step 4: Accepting the offer

If you accept the offer, you must return confirm this within 12 weeks of the offer notice.

When accepting the offer, you will need to appoint a legal representative to act on your behalf and let us know who they are.

Depending on your circumstances, you may consider:

  • Conducting a property survey (this will be at your own cost
  • Make your mortgage application, if needed.

Frequently asked questions

Can I buy my home if I have rent arrears or other debts with Alliance Homes?

If we’ve started possession proceedings because of your arrears, the Preserved Right to Buy or Right to Acquire can be denied at any time before the completion of the sale.

If there are no possession proceedings, you will not be able to complete until the arrears are paid in full.   

Once I apply, can I still access the free repairs service?

During the application process, our home repairs service will continue as normal.

Once your application has been accepted, we will only carry out emergency repairs to keep your home safe, secure, wind and watertight.

If you withdraw your application a normal repairs service will resume.

What if I have made improvements to my property that have added value?

You will be asked to list any improvements you've made to your home. We'll share this list with the independent RICS-certified surveyor, who will consider how much value these improvements have added (not how much you have best) and exclude this from the final valuation.

What if I have purchased before?

If you have purchased before either under the Right to Buy or Right to Acquire, you must declare it on your application form – the amount of discount you received will be deducted from your discount when you buy again. 

What is cost floor?

We can’t sell the property for less than what we’ve spent on it over a certain period, including the cost of buying, building, and maintaining it.

So, if our total costs are higher than your discounted offer, we would need to sell it at the amount we’ve spent.

What if the home I am buying has PV solar panels?

If your home has solar panels that are owned and maintained by Alliance Homes, you’ll need to sign agreement called an “air space lease”. This means Alliance Homes becomes the tenant of the roof space, and you become the landlord, for a pre-determined period.

Alliance Homes will insure the panels and equipment, and we’ll give you all the draft documents. You should appoint a solicitor with experience in this type of lease to advise you.

Can I sell my property after I’ve bought it?

Yes, you’re entitled to sell your property. However, if you sell it within the first five years, you’ll have to repay some or all of the discount. 

The repayment taper is shown below:

  • If sold within a year, 100% is repayable
  • If sold within 2 years, 80% is repayable
  • If sold within 3 years, 60% is repayable
  • If sold within 4 years, 40% is repayable
  • If sold within 5 years, 20% is repayable.

No repayment is required after five complete years.

If you decide to sell your property within ten years you have to offer the property back to us – this is known as the Right of First Refusal.

If we don’t wish to buy the property back, you are free to sell it on the open market. However, there is a fee for us to provide a certificate of compliance.

Will I own the loft space if I am purchasing a top floor flat?

Each lease will vary; some may have a ‘right to use’ the loft space for storage, while some do not allow access to the roof space at all.

Useful resources and more information