Right to Buy Housing Association Properties in Bristol will force sale of Council Houses

Housing in Bristol is currently the row right at the top of the agenda. There’s not enough of it and private renting in the city is already at crisis point.

Now Shelter are warning that the Government’s extension of Right to Buy will cost councils in the South West around £19.4 million each.

The amendments to the Housing and Planning Bill, will make local authorities sell of some of their council houses upon vacancy to fund discounts for housing association tenants taking up Right to Buy.

Shelter’s estimates finds that 23,500 much needed council houses across the country could be sold in one year.

But there is no requirement for these sold homes to then be replaced.

Bristol would need to raise 67m per years to fund the Right to Buy scheme in the city. Yet social housing is already in turmoil with long waiting lists and too many homeless families already languishing in hostels and temporary accommodation.

Shelter’s Chief Executive, Campbell Robb said: “With millions of families struggling to find a home they can afford, forcing councils to sell-off huge swathes of the few genuinely affordable homes they have left is reckless.

“Whilst the small number of lucky winners from this policy will understandably be grateful for the chance to buy their Housing Association property. Ultimately, far more people will lose out and be left with no choice but expensive, unstable private renting.

“The government is out of touch on this issue, and running out of time to help the millions of ordinary people in the South West crying out for a home that they can actually afford.”