How much discount am I entitled to?

Your discount depends on the number of years you have been a council tenant and on the valuation of your property. This may include time spent in different homes and/or with different landlords.  If you lived with your parents after the age of sixteen and later became a tenant of the same home, you may be able to include that time as well.
If you are buying jointly with someone who has a longer qualifying period than yours, you will be entitled to their higher rate of discount but you cannot 'add together' you’re separate qualifying periods.

Houses

The basic discount after five years is 35% for houses.  You are then entitled to an extra 1% discount for each extra complete year, up to a limit of 60%.

Flats and maisonettes

The basic discount after five years is 50% for flats and maisonettes.  You are then entitled to an extra 2% discount for each extra complete year, up to a limit of 70%.

Limits on discount

The government changed the discount rules on 11 February 1999 and the maximum cash discount in the North East of England is £22,000. 

What else affects the discount?

The discount you receive may be reduced if the amount of money we have spent on your home in the last 10-11 years is more than the purchase price of your home. This is called the cost floor. We can not sell you your home for less than the cost floor amount.

If you have previously bought a property under the Right to Buy scheme, then the discount you received for that property will be taken off the discount on your current Right to Buy purchase.