Government pushes Right to Buy agenda for 2014

Communities Secretary Eric Pickles ushered in the new year by announcing that the Government was taking further steps to reinvigorate the Right to Buy scheme.

The maximum discount for a house will increase from 60% to 70% of its value, and the £75,000 cap will start increasing in line with the consumer price index rate of inflation. A £100million fund will improve access to mortgage finance, and new Right to Buy agents will guide people through the buying process.

The Government said that revenue from additional sales would be ploughed back into delivering new affordable homes for rent which would help drive up the rate of housebuilding across the country.

Pickles said: "For years the Right to Buy was slowly strangled, with a miserly cap on discounts killing the prospect of home ownership for most social tenants.

"We don’t think Governments should be in the business of vetoing aspiration. That’s why we reinvigorated the Right Buy. It’s all part of our long-term economic plan to make Britain a country on the rise, where hard working people can be rewarded with the security and peace of mind that comes from owning their own home.

"Eighteen months later and with over 13,400 hard-working tenants taking up the offer, it’s clear the public shares our view. But we want to go further, that’s why we will soon be increasing the maximum percentage discount for houses, and ensuring that the cash cap rises with inflation, so more social tenants can make Right to Buy their New Year’s resolution for 2014.

"We’ll also continue to plough the cash from additional sales back into delivering new affordable homes for rent, which will help drive up the rate of housebuilding across the country."