Mortgage Meadow / Mortgages / Affordable Housing / Local Authority

The rising cost of property in the UK has led to many people being priced out of the housing market. The government in 2006 reacted to this problem by announcing a major investment of £8 billion towards affordable housing schemes throughout the UK and have changed legislation to allow for a massive three million new homes to be built by 2020.

There are now a huge number of affordable housing schemes operated by many government funded orgabisations all of which have their own unique rules on eligibility. It is recommended that if you are interested in purchasing through an affordable housing scheme you speak to one of our experts first who can tell you how likely you are to qualify for one of these schemes.

We have listed the main affordable housing schemes below, all of which we have experience in securing mortgages for. In addition our help area contains even more detailed information, including external links to relevant organisatiosn who may be able to advise you further.

The Right To Buy scheme is probably the best known affordable housing scheme. It allows local authority or social housing tenants the opportunity to purchase their home at a lower price lower than the open market value. The length of time you have spent as a tenant, the date you become a tenant and the location of the property will all influence the size of the discount that will be offered to you. However some banks and building societies do not like lending on some types of social housing such as high-rise blocks or properties not of traditional construction. However here at mortgage meadow we have relationships with many lenders that will look to lend on properties that some high street lenders would choose not to. Speak to us now for more information.

The Right to Acquire is a scheme giving eligible tenants of registered social landlords the legal right to buy the home they currently rent at a discount. Much like the right to buy scheme dicounts will depend on your length of tenancy, when the tenancy was started and where the property is in the UK. Also the type of property that can be purchased through the right to acquire may not appeal to some high street lenders, so please speak to one of our advisers who can tell you about which lenders that we have great relationships that will be more than happy to assist you.

The Social Government Homebuy Scheme is an alternative to the right to buy and right to acquire schemes and is usually of use for those who do not fulfil the criteria of either of those schemes. The social Homebuy scheme allows social housing tenants to buy their current home either outright or on shared ownership terms with the added benefit of a discount. Tenants can buy a minimum 25 per cent of the value of the property and pay a rental charge of not more than three per cent of the market value of the remaining equity that is owned by the landlord. Much like the Right To Buy and Acquire schemes, discounts will depend on your length of tenancy, when the tenancy was started and where the property is in the UK. Also the type of property that can be purchased through the Right To Acquire may not appeal to some high street lenders, so please speak to one of our advisers who can tell you about which lenders that we have great relationships that will be mopre than happy to assist you.

The New-Build Government Homebuy scheme is a shared ownership scheme which offers a low cost way of getting on the housing ladder. Shared ownership schemes are offered by Housing associations across the country. Shared-ownership works by allowing individuals to purchase a share of the property rather than buying the whole property itself. The property shares available under shared ownership schemes are between 25% and 75% of the property's value. So for example if you were purchasing a property that had an open market value of £100,000 and intended to take a 50% share of the property. You would only have to raise a mortgage of £50,000 to purchase the property. Please speak to one of our advisors about the lenders that will be happy to assist you in your new build shared ownership purchase.

The open Market  Homebuy Scheme  is designed to help first time buyers and key workers get a foot onto the property ladder. The definition of a key worker is defined very narrowly by the scheme and is limited to essential public servants that are key to a functioning society.

Under the government open market homebuy scheme a person purchases a property with the help of a government equity loan for part of the purchase. Please speak to one of our advisors about the lenders that will be happy to assist you if you a re purchaing a property using the Open Market Homebuy scheme.

The Key Worker Living Scheme is very similar to the Government Homebuy scheme for key workers. This scheme is designed to help certain key public sector employees in London, the South East and East of England where a lack of affordable housing has made it difficult to recruit certain key workers. Our advisors have much experience in this area. Why not give us a call if you think you are eliagble. The First Time Buyers Initiative is a shared equity scheme that aims to help eligible first time buyers to buy a share in a new home who cannot otherwise afford to buy a new home. It is being delivered through English Partnerships, the national regeneration agency. A 50% share is the minimum that must be purchased, with English Partnerships retaining the rest. The minimum loan amount offered by English partnerships is £25,00. Speak to us now or see our help area for further information on any of these schemes. 

At Mortgage Meadow we have strong links with a large number of lenders putting you in a better position to secure a mortgage for a property purchased through an affordable housing scheme than by you searching the market alone. We are experts, so can find you the most suitable  mortgage to fit your circumstances. We can talk through deals with the decision-makers in person and explain to them your situation. Having this relationship with lenders means that they can take an individual view on your particular circumstances and are more likely to agree the loan as a result.

Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage.