Right to buy

[Sleepyhead]

Hi,my sister has lived in the family home for over 40+ years.
My dad use to pay the rent,when he died,my sister began to pay,they have both worked all there lives.
dad has been dead for 5 years now,so when she put in to buy the family home,the council says she is not entitled to 75% discount as she has only been the paying tenent for 5 years.My sis has lived there all her life.
Is this right? only one person can pay rent at one time,so surely my sis should be able to claim the full 75% dicount.

[Inca]

Re: Right to buy

No,,can't see the entitlement there..If your Dad was named as the tenant then he would have been entitled but not your sister if her name only went on 5 years ago no matter how long she has lived there.http://righttobuy.communities.gov.uk/no/

[Sleepyhead]

Re: Right to buy

Thanks for reply.
Why is she not entitled to the max discount?
She had right of succesion to the tenenecy,has proof she has lived there for 40+ years.

My sis will lose her job shortly,she has two extra bedrooms she is liable to pay bedroom tax on.So this is big worry for her.

[MissFM]

Re: Right to buy

Hi Sleepyhead

Have a look at this link (same site as Inca's link above):

http://righttobuy.communities.gov.uk/about/

and do the eligibility test for your sis if you haven't already.

It's also worth ringing the local council for further clarification.

Hope there's a loophole!

[Inca]

Re: Right to buy

She doesn't get the entitlement,afaik,because she wasn't the tenant named on the 'rent book' for all those years,,her tenure only started 5 years ago and from what I can recall when my Ma in Law died because Dad wasn't on the rent book he automatically got 'right to succession' but couldn't buy it,,,and when he died that was that..we had to give the house back they had lived in 50 odd years,My OH and his brother put in a plea to buy it but it fell on deaf ears.
As she has the tenancy now,she can bid for smaller places to alleviate the bedroom tax problem. My council are offering 'sweetners' to get folks who have too many rooms to move into smaller places thus releasing larger properties for families.
Sorry I can't find a way of getting round it,,others on here may be more clued up than me.

[wales01man]

Re: Right to buy

If she is losing her job and going on benefits and is worried about bedroom tax how is she going to afford to buy?

[Sleepyhead]

Re: Right to buy

Thanks for replies,
Grasping at straws i suppose but somethings have to be challenged,have checked all links but none answer my questions so its off to my fav solicitor for more pro-bono advice .will get back to you when get results.
@walesman, keeping family home is important,so her son will be one who buys,thanks and merry Christmas to all members/readers at Legalbeagles.

[Inca]

Re: Right to buy

I'd tread very carefully if she proceeds with this Sleepyhead,,as she herself won't be buying the property her son has absolutely NO rights to use any discount scheme whatsoever.
The rules and regs of council property sales/tenancys is a complex matter..so yes..you would be well advised to seek proper legal advice.