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Council to claw back 260 Right to Buy homes
A Midlands council is to buy back 260 homes it previously sold through the Right to Buy.
Nottingham City Council announced a £5m scheme late last year to buy back ex-local authority homes, largely funded by new borrowing freedoms.
It planned to make 50 acquisitions over two years, but it has now decided to scale up that programme to buy 320 homes over the next four years, including 60 new builds.
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The council will take on two full-time officers to help run the expanded scheme, the cost of which has not been disclosed.
Purchases will be funded through Right to Buy receipts and Housing Revenue Account (HRA) borrowing.
Right to Buy receipts not spent within three years of the sale have to be given back to government with interest.
Nottingham City Council, which is run by a Labour administration, has committed to buying 1,000 new homes for its HRA.
A number of councils have Right to Buy clawback programmes. Several have stepped up this activity since the HRA borrowing cap was scrapped in October, allowing them to take on extra debt for housing investment.
Linda Woodings, portfolio holder for planning, housing and heritage at Nottingham City Council, said: “Though we have completed 500 new homes in partnership with Nottingham City Homes in the past five years as part of Nottingham’s biggest build programme for a generation, the waiting list and issue of homelessness continue to grow.
“We are always looking for ways to boost the amount of affordable housing in Nottingham and [we are] committed to providing quality housing for all.
“Buying homes this way allows us to provide quality accommodation in a quick and cost-effective way and make sure that money is reinvested locally.”
