The extension of the right to buy to housing association tenants is at the centre of last-minute negotiations as the homeownership taskforce prepares its report.
Presently, only those tenants who have lived for at least two years in association property built or acquired with public funds after 1 April 1997 are able to exercise this right – known as the 'right to acquire'.

This contrasts with council tenants, who, after living in council property for a similar period, are able to exercise the 'right to buy', regardless of when it was built or acquired.

A source close to the Housing Corporation-led taskforce said: "There is a lot of dancing around the issue of ensuring the equal treatment of social tenants. The aim is to boost access to home ownership, yet the concern is not to do this at the expense of further reducing social housing stock."

It is thought to be unlikely that the right to acquire will be extended to all housing association stock. However, some members of the taskforce are understood to be leaning increasingly towards extending the right to areas of low housing demand.

The source said: "This would create stability in areas of serious social deprivation and would definitely make good sense."

Overall, the conclusions of the taskforce – set to be finalised a week today and published by the start of November – are understood to press for a much greater role for low-cost or intermediate housing.

It will propose whittling down the number of versions of shared ownership – including Home Buy and the starter home initiative – but is likely to stop short of specifiying which should be for the chop.

Source

Housing Today