Our guide. Buying your home. If you need help understanding the information in this document, please contact us on

Transcription

1 Our guide Buying your home If you need help understanding the information in this document, please contact us on

2 Buying your home Our service to you As our customer, you deserve a commitment from us to provide a certain level of service. Our service standards tell you what you can expect from us, our engineers and contractors. If your experience does not match the standards that we have set, or you feel we could improve on the service we provide, please let us know by calling We monitor our performance against these standards and publish the results in our Annual Report and every three months on our website Every year, we will review the quality of our services with you and make any necessary changes. This may involve adding a new service standard or removing one. 2 - Buying your home - Our guide

3 Introduction Buying your own home is an exciting time with lots of things to consider. As a One Vision Housing tenant, you may be entitled to buy your home and even be eligible for a discount on the purchase price. This leaflet explains everything you need to know about buying your home. Your eligibility If you were a secure tenant with Sefton Council before transfer to One Vision Housing, you may be entitled to the preserved right to buy. As a transferring tenant, you may also be entitled to buy your home under the right to acquire, but the discount is less generous. If you signed up as a One Vision Housing tenant after October 2006, you should also be entitled to the right to acquire. You may be refused the preserved right to buy/right to acquire if your home is classed as sheltered accommodation or has been adapted. Preserved right to buy This applies to you if you were an existing tenant in October 2006 and transferred over from Sefton Council to One Vision Housing. Right to acquire This applies to tenants who signed up to One Vision Housing after stock transfer in October 2006; you must be an assured tenant, not short-hold, to be eligible. 3 - Buying your home - Our guide

4 How do you apply? If you are thinking of buying your home, call It is often cheaper for you to use your own solicitor and find a mortgage suitable to your needs rather than using a right to buy company. If you are approached by a right to buy company, we would advise that you ask for a complete breakdown of their charges before signing any forms. We will: ysend you an application pack containing your application form (RTB1) and including guidance and on how to apply yprovide you with a booklet for further information on the preserved right to buy regulations ycontact you within 14 days of receiving your completed application form advising you whether you qualify for the preserved right to buy or right to acquire, as applicable yarrange to have plans drawn up for your property prior to valuation (if you are purchasing a flat) ysend you an estimate of your service charge details for five years following the date of completion of the sale (if you are purchasing a flat). Our valuation service is provided by an independent estate agency, Edward Jackson Partnership. The valuation is based on the date of your application. 4 - Buying your home - Our guide

5 Completing the sale Once we have received your evaluation report, we will: ysend you an offer letter (called section 125) detailing the offer price for the property and advising you what to do next including how to appeal against the valuation price yoffer you an interview, if you decide to accept our offer, providing you with important information on your responsibilities once you purchase your home. Our Legal Team will then take over the process until your sale is completed. Are you entitled to discount? For preserved right to buy Any discount entitlement you have built up with Sefton Council will have transferred with you to One Vision Housing. Your discount will continue to increase (up to a maximum of 26,000) while you are one of our tenants. The discount entitlement is final and there can be no appeals against this amount. For right to acquire The government has set a maximum discount of 9,000 for Sefton. This discount entitlement is final and there can be no appeals against this amount. Your discount entitlement depends on the length of time you have spent as a public sector tenant. This includes, time spent with Sefton Council, housing associations, armed forces and certain other public sector bodies such as National Health Service Trusts, Church Commissioners etc. Full details are provided within your application pack. 5 - Buying your home - Our guide

6 Things you need to know Before buying your property under either the preserved right to buy or right to acquire schemes, it is important to note the following: yif your tenancy started after 18th January 2005, you will need at least five years as a public sector tenant in order to be eligible, i.e. a tenant with a council, housing association or the armed forces (you may be able to access your preserved right to buy with other members of your family who have lived with you for at least 12 months) ywe will require proof of residency for example, council tax bill, utility bill, credit card or bank account statement for any family members who wish to be part of the preserved right to buy process yone Vision Housing can cancel your preserved right to buy/right to acquire at any stage, even one day before completion of sale, if a suspended possession order is granted by the County Court yif you are refused the preserved right to buy/right to acquire, you can appeal to the Secretary of State. This must be in writing within 56 days of being refused by One Vision Housing. For further information about buying your home, pop into one of our Neighbourhood Offices, call , visit our website or us at enquiries@ovh.org.uk yyour application will be cancelled if you have been to court over rent arrears and the judge issued a suspended possession order 6 - Buying your home - Our guide

7 Contact us One Vision Housing Atlantic House, Dunnings Bridge Road, Bootle, Merseyside L30 4TH Telephone: Fax: Web: Customer Access Centre Coral Drive, Bootle, Merseyside L20 3UG Open: Mon to Fri - 9am to 5pm (Office closes at 4pm every Wed) Greenfields Place Information Centre St James Drive, Bootle, Merseyside L20 4EL enquiries@ovh.org.uk Open: Tues and Thurs - 10am to 1pm Please consider the environment and recycle this document. with the Social Landlords Crime and Nuisance Group with the Housing Ombudsman Service

8 8 - Buying your home - Our guide