Buying my Grandparents council house : Right To Buy Scheme

Jeffers87

Hi Everyone,

Due to recent circumstances I have begun researching into purchasing my Grandmothers council house; I feel this may be my only opportunity to ‘step’ onto my first rung of the property ladder.

If anyone could offer me any advice and information I would be extremely grateful.

She has been living in the property for over 50 years, meaning she would receive a heavily discounted price under the Right To Buy scheme. Obviously she can only receive the discount as she is the tenant.

With the discounted price I feel it may be achievable for me to finance the remainder of the cost via a mortgage. As I am not a tenant I cannot buy the property outright; but could I act as her ‘guarantor’?!

Also with this in mind what documentation would I require to ensure that the house would come to me at a later date?

Also, what TAX implications etc. if any would occur when the house would eventually be in my name?

Thank you in advance for your help.

R

holly_hobby

Is this a wind up ?

Holly

Yorkie1

Your GM must be the one to purchase the property; you cannot do so.

How old is she? I suspect over 70 if she has lived there 50+ years? If so, she is unlikely to be able to raise a mortgage on the property and you cannot guarantee it.

You will have to give her the whole purchase price to enable her to buy it. You cannot get a mortgage on it because you are not the occupier - names on deeds must match the name on the mortgage. And you are unlikely in the extreme to get a BTL mortgage in these circumstances.

I also assume that she doesn't have ready savings available - or she would be using them? If so, if she is on any form of means-tested benefit, she will lose those benefits when you give her the money because she now has that money in her bank account - irrespective of whether she then chooses to buy the place.

She currently has the security of a tenancy for life, with no responsibilities for maintenance payments. As soon as she purchases, she becomes liable for all this. Does she really need this at this time of her life?

Frankly your post comes across as incredibly self-centred and not at all in your GM's interests. Let her enjoy the stability of her life as it is without pressurising her.

WATTY1978

Social housing should be a safety net for people in housing need not to get a foot on the property ladder. yes your grandmother is entitled to a discount but many councils have extra checks in place to ensure the discounts are not exploited. i'm sure you mean well but this is not what social housing was meant to do. i'm sure your post will attract all manner of comments and a few more raised eyebrows. just have a think about your post and why its not right.

there is plenty of help for first time buyers to get on the ladder. please consider other options.

Good luck

charlieismydarling

Wrong on so many levels.

Social housing is not an opportunity for you to get a foot on the housing ladder. Disgraceful.

Jeffers87

I assure you I do mean well. I do not intentially mean in any way to abuse the social housing network. Yes it maybe a backward way to attempt to secure our family's future but at the moment it seems the only option. The purchase of the house would be a joint family effort and we would continue to offer my grandmother her stability and security as we have always done?! The revitalised right to buy scheme has been put in place to ensure a new affordable home is built for every one sold through it. Surely it makes no difference if my grandmother or I pay for it?!

hcb42

It's not what the discount is for and not going to be possible. You will have to save up your own deposit if you want a house, unfortunately

Werdnal

Been through this subject here so many time before. The RTB is for the tenant and tenant alone, and however you try to dress it up, you ARE trying to manipulate the system to get on the housing ladder cheap. There have been many posts here trying to justify why family members want to help parent, aunt, uncle, grandad, 2nd cousin twice removed to secure THEIR home by helping THEM to buy it, then let themselves down by stating they want to ensure the house transfers to them in the end!

As for ganny, if she has any need to go into care in the future, the property value would be taken into account to fund her care home fees, and you would have little right to stop it. As it is at the moment, she has no major assets, so should receive government funded care.

Good luck with your fiddle, but be prepared for the backlash from the rest of the forum, as I am being very restrained compared to the short shrift you may receive from some members ...

tealady

Jeffers
If you act as guarantor (assuming that the Council allow it) then you are responsible for paying ALL of the debt.
Have you the funds to buy the house outright. If you have and you do give your relative the money then remember there are rules about reselling the property.
Also bear in mind that the owner will not be you, so they could leave the house to whoever they like and you could be thousands out of pocket.
Oh and don't forget to cost in solicitors fees, survey fees, insurances etc.

seven-day-weekend

The house must be in your Gran's name, not yours.

Therefore you won't get a mortgage in your name for it.

AFAIK, once she has bought it, in her name, whoever provides the money, it will belong solely to her and there is nothing to stop her leaving it to the Cats' Home or local branch of the Moonies. You can't guarantee it will pass to the family.

Hope this helps.

Richard_Webster

If you enter into any kind of agreement whereby your GM agrees to transfer the property to you then a disposal is deemed to have taken place and the discount is immediately repayable! So you would have to give her the money with no certainty the house would eventually be yours!