We're not currently holding face-to-face meetings. Please complete the form electronically here online application form RTB1, or download a copy of the form (PDF) and email it to righttobuy@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk along with copies of photo ID and 2 to 3 recently-dated utility bills. The maximum discount amount has been amended to £34,000.00 with effect from 21 November 2024.
Right to Buy: buying your council home
Please note: Email is not secure, so please ensure you take all appropriate precautions to protect any personal information.
You can also post your application to:
Housing Business Team
Central Bedfordshire Council
Priory House
Monks Walk
Chicksands
Shefford
Bedfordshire
SG17 5TQ
How Right to Buy works
You have the right to buy your council home after 3 years.
You can apply:
- jointly with family members over 18 years old who have lived with you for at least 12 months
- if you are currently receiving Housing Benefit or have in the past
The scheme allows council and housing association tenants to buy their home at a discount.
Once you have completed an application form, you will need to return it, with a copy of your original photo ID, by email to righttobuy@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk
Please note: Email is not secure, so please ensure you take all appropriate precautions to protect any personal information.
You can also post it to:
Housing Business Team
Central Bedfordshire Council
Priory House
Monks Walk
Chicksands
Shefford
Bedfordshire
SG17 5TQ
Acceptable forms of ID are:
- current passport
- current driving licence or ID card
- proof of previous tenancies
- proof that you are living at the property
We may request further documentary evidence from you.
There are 7 steps in the process:
- check eligibility
- read the Right to Buy information pack
- complete application form
- landlord confirms eligibility
- receive an offer
- over to you – mortgage, etc.
- complete the purchase
Property exemptions
Certain types of property are exempt from Right to Buy:
- elderly persons' dwelling
- dwelling houses for persons of pensionable age
- dwellings for disabled persons
- dwellings for people suffering from a mental disorder
- properties scheduled for demolition
Eligibility
Your current tenancy status must be secure in order to be eligible for the Right to Buy. Certain types of tenancies are not considered as secure for the purposes of Right to Buy - see Section 79 (2) and Schedule 1 amended of the Housing Act 1985 for a full list.
Where a tenancy is in joint names, both tenants must be named and sign the application form regardless of whether they wish to join in the purchase or not.
Any tenant who is subject to one of the following orders will not be allowed to join in the scheme:
- possession order with a fixed date - including Suspended Possession Order
- Ground 2 criminal nuisance order
- Right to Buy suspension order
- bankruptcy order
- demotion order
- eligibility of family members
Certain family members have the right to join in an application, even if they are not tenants.
In order for a family member to exercise their right to join in the scheme, they must satisfy all 3 of the following requirements. They must:
- be the spouse or civil partner of the tenant; or the tenant and that person live together as if they were husband and wife or civil partners, or the tenant’s parent, grandparent, child, grandchild, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, nephew or niece
- live at the property as their only or principal home
- have been living at the property for 12 months immediately preceding the date of application
Family members are automatically excluded from the scheme if they are subject to any of the Court Orders detailed in the ‘Eligibility of Tenants’ section.
The qualifying period
The tenant will need to have been a public sector tenant for a minimum of 3 years (this does not have to be 3 years in a row).
The discount
The longer you have been a tenant, the bigger the discount you get off the market value of the property, up to a maximum discount of £34,000 (effective 21 November 2024)
Discount levels for houses and flats start at 3 years of eligible tenancy, increasing after 5 years from the starting point of 35% for houses and 50% for a flat, up to the maximum of 70% for both.
Examples of discounts
Buying a house
Discounts start at 35% for 3 to 5 years, at year 6 add 1% for each extra year of tenancy up to 70% or the cash maximum of £34,000 (effective 21 November 2024).
Current house value: £120,000
Years as a tenant: 10
Eligible discount: 40%
Discount value: £48,000
The price you pay for a house: £72,000
Buying a flat
Discounts start at 50% for 3 to 5 years, at year 6 add 2% for each extra year of tenancy up to 70% or the cash maximum of £34,000 (effective 21 November 2024).
Current flat value: £100,00
Years as a tenant: 10
Eligible discount: 60%
Discount value: £60,000
The price you pay for a house: £40,000
Valuation of a property
| Type of property | Dunstable | Leighton Buzzard | Villages |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 bedroom flat | £150,000 | £160,000 | No valuation available |
| 2 bedroom house | £250,000 | No valuation available | No valuation available |
| 3 bedroom house | £265,000 | No valuation available | £260,000 |
Valuations of our housing stock were carried out between March 2023 and December 2023.
We will instruct an independent external valuer to value the property.
Only improvements made by you to the property will be disregarded in the valuation.
The price you will pay for your home is based on:
- the market valuation of your property which we will arrange to be carried out free of charge
- how long you have been a tenant in your current home and any previous public sector tenancies you’ve claimed that can be confirmed
- the cost to us of buying or building your property – if any work was done in the last 15 years, the cost of this work may reduce your discount
- previous Right to Buy purchases – you are only entitled to one Right to Buy discount in total so previous discounts given will be deducted from any discount you may currently be entitled to receive
Things to consider
Once we have received your application we will only carry out essential repairs and the property will be excluded from any planned maintenance projects, such as bathroom and kitchen replacements.
Once the sale of the property is complete, you will be responsible for all repairs and maintenance. If you wish to do any structural work to the garden or property, you'll need our consent.
You might find the checklist below useful in comparing costs as a homeowner and a tenant.
| One-off costs | Homeowner | Tenant |
|---|---|---|
| Legal fees | Yes | No |
| Stamp duty | Yes | No |
| Mortgage fees | Yes | No |
| Other costs | Yes | No |
| Ongoing costs | Homeowner | Tenant |
| Mortgage | Yes | No |
| Rent | No | Yes |
| Utility bills | Yes | Yes |
| Insurance | Yes | Yes |
| Life insurance | Yes | Yes |
| Major repairs | Yes | No |
| Service charge | If applicable | If applicable |
| Other living costs | Yes | Yes |
Buying a home can be a long process and can take several months
We must process your application within certain timescales as below:
- confirmation of eligibility – up to 4 weeks to reply (8 weeks if you have been with us for less than 5 years)
- sending out an offer letter – 8 weeks for a house and 12 weeks for a flat
If we do not meet these timescales, or delay without reason, you could get a reduction in the sale price.
Applying for a reduction
Fill in an initial notice of delay form (RTB6) and send it back to us.
We must either move the sale along within 1 month or send you a ‘counter notice’. The counter-notice will say that we have already replied or explained why they cannot speed things up.
If you do not get a response to your first notice within 1 month, you should complete an operative notice of delay form (RTB8) and send it to us. Once you have sent that, we may have to refund rent monies paid during the delay period – you must continue to pay rent. Any amount relevant to the delay period(s) will be deducted when the sale is completed.
Risks
Do not forget that if you fail to make repayments towards your mortgage there is a risk that your property will be repossessed.
Useful contacts
The government’s ‘Right to Buy Agent’ offers free and impartial advice. If you visit the Right to Buy website you can download an application form, or call 0300 123 0913 for more information.
If you have a Right to Buy enquiry please contact righttobuy@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk
For more information, you can download the Your Right to Buy Your Home (PDF 480.9KB) 
guide.