Head Content Writer
Director
Wondering how much you could save by buying your council or housing association home? Our calculator gives you a quick estimate of your Right to Buy or Right to Acquire discount, and the price you could buy your home for.
If you'd like to know more about how the schemes work, who can apply and how to get a mortgage, take a look at our Right to Buy mortgage guide.
Which option should you choose?
The calculator works out your discount differently depending on which scheme applies to you, so it's important to pick the right one:
- Choose Right to Buy if you rent from the council, or if your home was transferred from the council to a housing association while you were living there.
- Choose Right to Acquire if you rent from a housing association.
If you're not sure, your landlord will be able to tell you.
How to use our calculator
Right to Buy
- Property type. Choose whether your home is a house, flat or maisonette, as the discount works differently for houses and flats.
- Property value. Enter roughly what your home is worth. See our tips below if you're not sure.
- Length of tenancy. Enter the total number of years you've been a public sector tenant. This can include time renting from different councils, housing associations, the armed forces or an NHS trust, and the years don't need to be in a row.
- Region. Choose the area of England where your home is.
- Reduced-cap area. Let us know if your home is in one of the council areas where a lower maximum discount applies.
Right to Acquire
- Property value. Enter roughly what your home is worth.
- Length of tenancy. Choose whether you've been a public sector tenant for at least three years.
- Qualifying property. Choose whether your home was built or bought by a housing association after 31 March 1997, or transferred from a council after that date. If neither applies, check with your landlord.
- Local authority area. Start typing your council area and choose it from the list.
Tips for estimating your home's value
Your discount is based on your home's value, so the closer your estimate, the more useful your results will be. To get a good idea of what your home is worth:
- Look at recent sales nearby. Property websites show what similar homes on your street or estate have sold for.
- Compare like with like. Look for homes with the same number of bedrooms and a similar layout, condition and type (house or flat).
- Ask a local estate agent. Many will give you a free valuation.
- Leave out your own improvements. If you've made improvements yourself, such as a new kitchen, these usually aren't included in the value your landlord uses.
When you apply, your landlord will arrange an official valuation, which is what your actual discount will be based on.
What your results mean
Once you've entered your details, the calculator will show you:
- Your estimated discount, as a cash amount (and a percentage for Right to Buy)
- The price you could buy your home for after your discount
- A breakdown showing how your discount has been worked out
- How long until you'd reach the maximum discount, if you haven't already
- A summary you can download, which is handy to have when you speak to one of our advisers
The price after your discount is roughly how much you'd need to fund, usually with a mortgage.
How the calculator works out your discount
Right to Buy
The calculator first works out your percentage discount, based on your type of home and how long you've been a tenant. For houses, this starts at 35%, and for flats and maisonettes, it starts at 50%. It then rises the longer you've been a tenant.
Next, it checks this against the maximum cash discount for your region. You'll receive whichever is lower. Because the regional limits are fairly low, most people will find the cash limit is what decides their discount.
Right to Acquire
Right to Acquire works differently. Rather than a percentage, you'll get a fixed cash discount, which depends on your local authority area. The calculator looks up the discount for the area you've chosen. Your discount won't increase the longer you've been a tenant.
Example calculations
Here are some examples to show how the calculator works. These are for illustration only.
Right to Buy
A tenant who has rented from the council for 10 years, in a region where the maximum discount is £26,000:
3-bed house | 2-bed flat | |
|---|---|---|
Market value | £220,000 | £160,000 |
Percentage discount | 40% (£88,000) | 60% (£96,000) |
Discount after the regional limit | £26,000 | £26,000 |
Purchase price | £194,000 | £134,000 |
In both cases, the regional limit is lower than the percentage discount, so this is the discount the tenant would receive.
Right to Acquire
A housing association tenant in an area with a fixed discount of £16,000:
3-bed house | 2-bed flat | |
|---|---|---|
Market value | £220,000 | £160,000 |
Fixed discount | £16,000 | £16,000 |
Purchase price | £204,000 | £144,000 |
Why your actual discount might be different
Our calculator gives you a helpful estimate, but your landlord will confirm your exact discount when you apply. It could be different from your results if:
- Your landlord's valuation is different from your estimate
- Your landlord has spent money on your home recently, as this can reduce your discount
- You've used Right to Buy or Right to Acquire before
- The rules change. The government is planning changes to Right to Buy, including a longer qualifying period and smaller discounts. Our Right to Buy mortgage guide explains what's changing.
Ready for the next step?
Now you have an idea of your discount, the next step is to find out whether you could get a mortgage for the rest. Many lenders will let you use your discount as your deposit, but each has its own rules.
Our specialist Right to Buy mortgage brokers can tell you how much you could borrow and find lenders that suit your situation. Get started here for a free, no-obligation chat.
Frequently Asked Questions
Below you will find the answers to the questions we hear most often from Echo Finance customers:
A mortgage broker, or a mortgage advisor, is an intermediary who acts as a conduit between an aspiring borrower and a lender. It is their job to provide the mortgage applicant with impartial advice, help them choose the right product and arrange the deal with the lender.
Brokers provide services including advice on which type of mortgage to choose, providing access to exclusive rates through their lender contacts, and application support. Some can offer advice on all areas of the mortgage market, while others specialise in niche fields such as buy-to-let, bad credit, commercial finance, first-time buyers or self-employed borrowers.
People choose to apply for their mortgage through a broker because it can boost their chances of finding the right deal, while saving time and money in the long run.
Find your local adviser
- Residential mortgages: Everything from fixed-rate to tracker mortgages for first-time buyers, homemovers and remortgage borrowers
- Specialist mortgages: For borrowers who fall outside of standard lending criteria, including people with bad credit, self-employed professionals and more
- Later-life lending: Including advice on equity release, mortgages for pensioners and retirement interest only (RIO) mortgages
- Bridging & Commercial: We have specialist advisors on hand for commercial mortgages, bridging loans, development finance and more
- Insurance & Protection: Including life, home and critical illness cover for families and individuals, as well as landlord and business protection insurance
Echo Finance is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and is reviewed annually by an independent compliance company. All of our brokers and advisers hold industry-standard qualifications, such as CeMAP, CeRER and DipMap, where required.
We are committed to providing advice through the channels that best suit your needs. Our brokers can provide advice via phone, email, video and web chat from anywhere in the UK, but we also aim to offer face-to-face appointments for those who request them.
Frequently Asked Questions
No. Our calculator doesn't carry out a credit check, so you can use it as often as you like.