so the people with low rent that is subed, will now be able to buy with a sub total madness

[medona]

The people in the country with rent that us subbed will be promised a discount of up to 100000 to buy this property. It's madness all over again.

This scheme is estimated by some to cost 29 billion.

There really is no point working in this country, the middle just get squeezed more by the day. Best off either never working or being rich.

Sorry if I'm repeating a previous post, but housing association tenants already have the right to buy. I was shocked to learn I'll gain this right after only 18 months in my flat! The price you'll pay goes down the longer you've lived there

I gather the Tories want to fork out lump sums of taxpayers' money to speed this process up. It's the final stage of Mrs T's council house sell-off, presumably.

It's all wrong. Just handing over still more publicly-owned property to banks, essentially (as the banks will own the places when they're mortgaged, and profit from the loans on them.) And yanking on people's greed to make it happen, as before.

"Yanking on people's greed" = succinct.

How is it greedy to want to own a home? One single home.

Most of us scrimped and plotted for that. Some people get large deposits simply handed to them. But for lots of people now, it's out of reach.

Huge BTL portfolios is 'greed'. Complicated tax dodges are 'greed'.

Wanting to own a small, modest home, not so much.

I don't like the policy that much, but slating people who might take it up instead of the people who wrote it is just odd, to me.

It's not greed to want to own one home - but if that home happens to be part of a very limited housing stock for people who are supposed to be (I say supposed to be, but in reality - thanks to the lack of means testing - that's not always the case) on low income to access then it's wrong (imo) for that social housing asset to be taken out of that limited pot - all it does is reduce the available housing stock for others to access in the future and give those buyers the opportunity to sell on for a profit or rent out (again for profit)

I'm with you on huge BTL/tax dodges/etc - none of them are right either.

It should be a nail in the tories' coffin. I hope it is.

It's not greedy to want to own a home. But unless the government is about to build homes for every person currently living in rented accommodation, it's difficult to see how this policy honestly gets anybody closer to a 'property owning democracy'.

It might enable some ha tenants who are in a position to get a mortgage to buy a house but in the context of the housing crisis is that really the problem that needs to be solved?

Meanwhile, having bought a few votes, do you honestly trust the Tories to follow through and help people in need? They have had 5 years and they don't really seem that bothered about housing.

I know someone who is an artistic director for the BBC. You will have seen his work if you have watched anything on CBeebies or CBBC in the last 20 years. He lives in a Housing Association flat in Fulham - an extremely expensive and Sloaney part of London for those not in the know - and has done for the last 20 years. You can bet your sweet ass he is earning more than £50k pa, and all that time has been living on a tiny rent.

Why the actual should he get the right to buy? At a discount??

I don't trust the Conservatives an inch.

Let's just hope their flick through 'Maggie's greatest hits' doesn't fall open on 'F'.

Falklands?

Quite agree Mintyy. I know someone who is on significantly more than the national average wage, wife who was able to give up work thanks to their tiny rent to be a SAHP, who plans to buy their very swanky LA flat in the near future, sell up almost immediately and buy their dream property with land in the country.

Why the hell should he get the right to buy an expensive apartment from the HA stock at a discount, simply to use it to fund the big country house??

Indeed merry.

All PMs go funny in their final term. I can imagine DC looking around for a skirmish.

But in the interest of fairness...just supposing the Tories do get in, do you think for a minute that a successive Labour (or other) Govt would rescind this? 'Course they bloody wouldn't - just as New Labour didn't.

Just floating in and out, so no direct answers given, but as before I say as a possible beneficiary of this policy and someone who also hates it, and stood up over a decade ago in a place I don't live in now, because there was nowhere available to live, but it took 10 years and the homes are there now and I can look at that and other things, with pride. But still I can consider taking up this policy offer? And I won't be voting Tory even? At what point do I say to myself - stop float, think of yourself now? Big questions to ask myself.

Wtf at this "hating poor people getting a let up"

Many people in ha are not poor, in fact the only ones able to afford this are the very people that don't need help. I know plenty in London with these flats that can well afford private rent but they have a good deal, way less than half price rent.

Social housing is very unfair in this country, this will just make it worse.

I thought Housing Associations are charities and have naff all to do with Council housing stock or the Government, so wouldn't be under their regulation. How on Earth can a Government dictate to a Housing Association and order them to sell their housing stock?

It's all bollocks to try to get working people to vote for them under the pretence of 'owning their own home', that would be impossible otherwise. I can't see how they have the power to order a charity to sell their properties, or am I missing something?

Governments can privatise, nationalise, arrange large scale compulsory purchases.... Why not this?

HAs are not 'normal' charities anyway.

I am coming round to the idea that was suggested either here or on one of the other threads, that they'll vaunt this as policy right up until the point that they run into legal difficulties over forcing sales. Then it will be blaming the HAs, dropping the policy and ordering another bottle of something nice.

Or it will be dropped in coalition negotiations

Wouldn't that be a shocker?

Why don't they compulsory purchase all of the empty housing stock? It makes no sense for them to do this given the mess that happened when Maggie Thatcher did this to the council housing stock, there's still fallout! HA's don't have the same regulation as council housing stock. It's not within the Government's power to do this. I rent privately. I'd be really pissed if the people in the HA houses across the road could buy their homes at a discount but I can't because I don't live in a HA house.

It'll get dropped, it's unworkable.

Minty and Sirchenjin how do high earners get ha properties? I had assumed you need to be on a low income to get one? Or is it the case that once you get one you're never asked to move on, so they became high earners whilst living in social housing?

Either way, there should be rules that you have to move to alternative accommodation once you earn over a certain level, social housing is subsidised for those on low incomes imo, not people on high salaries who should be paying market rent and freeing up social housing for those who need it.

Why don't they compulsory purchase all of the empty housing stock?

because it needs renovating/maintaining which is expensive.

Minty and Sirchenjin how do high earners get ha properties?

WSS

Surely if they are paying out less in housing benefit because they are not lining the pockets of the private landlords then they can use the surplus for renovating/maintaining and will still end up spending less overall?

this latest Tory wheeze is the worst policy idea... since... er... Right to Buy!

Surely no one is going to fall for it???