Buying the home you rent
As a Southern Housing resident it may be possible to buy the home that you rent from us.
There are a number of schemes that allow you to do this and the eligibility criteria for each is different.
Find out more about these schemes below:
- Preserved Right To Buy (PRTB)
The PRTB is the legal right given to former tenants of local authorities with a secure tenancy, to buy their home. The Preserved Right to Buy only applies if you were a tenant with specific local authorities during specific dates*.
- Right to Acquire
Right to Acquire allows most housing association tenants to buy their home at a discount if certain criteria is met*.
- Right to Shared Ownership
Eligible residents will be able to buy an initial share of their home worth between 10% and 75% of its full market value, either in cash or through a mortgage, which can then be increased to 100% overtime through ‘staircasing’*.
* Please note: the eligibility criteria for each scheme may vary.
The cost of homeownership
Before you look to purchase your home you will need to carefully consider if you can afford to run your own home. On-going costs to take into account include:
- Mortgage repayments that may work out higher than your current rental payments
- Insurance (buildings and contents)
- Insurance for accident, sickness & unemployment
- Service charges (if you are buying your property as a leaseholder)
- Repairs and maintenance (major repairs will be your responsibility, for example boiler replacement, roofing repairs, plumbing work)
- Other costs such as council tax, utilities and other bills.
It is important to remember that your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage. You may risk being made homeless.
This handy calculator tool is a good way to explore and consider the costs of buying your own home.