For many council and housing association tenants, the dream of homeownership may feel out of reach, especially with rising property prices. However, if you’re happy to stay put, the Right to Buy and Right to Acquire schemes both offer substantial discounts on the market value of your socially rented home.
Our calculator is designed to help you estimate exactly how much of a discount you are entitled to. This can be a great jumping off point when it comes to understanding how much of a mortgage you’d need to buy the home.
Check your discount and find out how we can help you secure the borrowing you need
How to Use the Right to Buy/Right to Acquire Calculator
Although the Right to Buy and Right to Acquire schemes are similar, there are distinct differences between them, particularly in terms of the discounts available to you. It’s important to select the right button on the calculator depending on your situation:
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If you’re in a council home - Click Right to Buy
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If you’re in a housing association home - Click Right to Acquire
To get an accurate estimate of your discount and the remaining property price you will need to mortgage, simply follow these steps:
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Enter the property value: Input the current market value of your home. You can usually find this by searching for the sale price of recently sold similar properties in your area. Your landlord may also be able to help you with the property value, or you could ask an estate agent for a free valuation
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How many years as a tenant: Enter the total number of years you have spent as a public sector tenant. This includes all time spent with any type of social housing landlord, it does not have to be the same type that you are currently in. So, for example, if you are in a council house and used to live in a housing association flat, both periods can be added together. This also applies if you had breaks between tenancies, for example, if you lived with friends or family for a year and then returned to a social landlord
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Qualifying condition (Right to Acquire only): Housing Association properties have 2 potential qualifying factors, select which of these apply from the drop down list. If neither apply to your home it’s unlieklye you will qualify for the scheme but please contact your landlord for clarity
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Location: From the dropdown list, choose the area that your property is located in
The calculator will then show you:
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Your Right to Buy or Right to Acquire discount, both by percentage of property value and the monetary value
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How much you could buy for based on this discount (so the size of mortgage you would need)
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How many years you would have to wait until you were entitled to the maximum possible discount on that property
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A download summary, which you can use when speaking to a borker about arranging a mortgage for your home
Please note: The calculator provides estimates based on current government guidelines. Discounts are subject to regional caps and landlord verification. Your actual discount may differ based on factors such as previous Right to Buy applications, property improvements, and your landlord's assessment. Always seek independent advice before proceeding.
Why Use This Calculator?
This calculator tool provides a great insight into the feasability of buying your council or housing association property.
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Plan your budget: You can find out exactly how much you need to borrow from a lender to buy your home. You can then find out if you could borrow enough with our ‘how much can I borrow calculator’ and whether this is affordable to you by using our ‘mortgage repayment calculator’
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Understand your deposit requirement: In most cases, the discount you receive acts as your deposit, meaning you might not need to save a separate cash sum, however, this will depend on your broader circumstances and individual lender criteria
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Assess eligibility: You can use the download summary to speak to a mortgage broker and find out which lenders may be able to help you buy your home, before starting the formal government scheme application process
Example calculations
The below examples are based on a typical property in a major UK city outside of London, such as Birmingham, Manchester, or Leeds
Right to Buy example
|
Property Type |
Market Value |
Discount % (10 Years) |
Cash Discount |
Your Purchase Price |
|
Typical 3-Bed House |
£220,000 |
40% |
£88,000 |
£132,000 |
|
Typical 2-Bed Flat |
£160,000 |
60% |
£96,000 |
£64,000 |
Right to Acquire (RTA) Example
|
Property Type |
Market Value |
Fixed Cash Discount* |
Your Purchase Price |
|
Typical 3-Bed House |
£220,000 |
£16,000 |
£204,000 |
|
Typical 2-Bed Flat |
£160,000 |
£16,000 |
£144,000 |
*This example uses the maximum £16,000 discount common in many urban areas. In some regions, this discount may be as low as £9,000.
What Happens Next?
Once you have used the calculator to estimate your discount, your next steps involve:
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Apply for the scheme - further details can be found on the government website
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Get an official valuation - your landlord will provide an official offer (S2 or RTB2 form) confirming the valuation and the discount
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Speak to a specialist broker - not all lenders offer Right to Buy and Right to Acquire suitable mortgages so it is often beneficial to speak to a mortgage adviser, like ourselves, who specialises in mortgages for social housing schemes
Ready to see if you could buy your social home? Get started today, your initial consultation with one of our specialist brokers is always free, and there is no-obligation
FAQs
While both schemes aim to help tenants become homeowners, the rules and discount levels differ. Right to buy is primarily for tenants of local authorities (councils). You usually need to have been a public sector tenant for at least three years, but the discount is higher. It starts at 35% after three years and rises by 1% for every extra year for houses. For flats, it starts at 50% and rises by 2% for every extra year, up to a maximum discount for the area you live in.
Right to Acquire is generally for tenants of housing associations As well as having a three-year tenancy history, the property must also have been built or bought by a housing association after 15 February 1997. Right to Acquire offers a fixed-sum discount ranging from £9,000 to £16,000, depending on the local authority area in which the property is located.