They can benefit because the price is set when the tenant first registers an intention to buy; the rising property market means the buyer ends up paying under the odds in real terms.
Under current rules, a tenant has 12 months to complete the purchase. When this is up, the landlord issues up to two consecutive notices to complete, each lasting 56 days.
Tenants therefore have a total of 16 months to make their purchase.
Landlords, though, face a financial penalty if they delay the process for more than one month.
The new clause would allow landlords to serve a first notice to complete after three months and give a 56-day response period for both this and a second notice.
This would mean tenants had a total of seven months to complete.
Landlords would still face a penalty for delaying by more than a month .
An ODPM spokeswoman said the aim was to bring total purchase times in line with the private sector and close a loophole.
She said: "Even after the 16 months have lapsed, other matters such as a dispute about value can mean the process is delayed further."
Geraldine Howley, chief executive of Bradford Community Housing Trust, said she welcomed the rule change because too many applications were dragged out for more than 12 months.
But she urged the government to concentrate on the "meatier" problems associated with the right to buy.
She said: "I don't think the measure will have any real affect on reducing the number of purchases. The government needs to address the size of discounts offered in the scheme."
Bradford is one of many Northern authorities that have been hit by surging right to buy sales in the past year (HT 20 February, page 9).
Source
Housing Today
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