The Council must send you Form "Right to Buy 2" telling you whether or not you have the Right to Buy within 4 weeks from the date on which the Council received your "Right to Buy 1" and all additional information forms (or within 8 weeks if you have been a tenant of the Council for less than 2 years).

If the Council says that you don't have the Right to Buy your home, it must explain why. It may be because your home is particularly suitable for occupation by elderly persons, taking into account its location, size, design, heating system and other features. Other exceptions to the Right to Buy are listed on the exceptions to the right to buy page.

The Council's Section 125 Notice:

If the Council has agreed to sell your home to you, it will arrange for a valuation of your home and the Council's surveyor will contact you to arrange a convenient time to visit your home. The Council will then send you a separate Section 125 Notice which tells you the price you have to pay and any other terms and conditions of the sale.

The Council must send you this within 8 weeks of the "Right to Buy 2" form if your home is a house and you are buying a freehold or within 12 weeks if your home is a flat or maisonette. If you are buying a house on leasehold terms, the time limit is also 12 weeks.

Appealing to the District Valuer:

When you receive the Section 125 notice, you may feel that the valuation of your home is too high.

If you do, you can get an independent valuation from the District Valuer. To do this, you have to tell the Council, within 12 weeks of receiving the Section 125 notice, that you want a 'determination of value' under Section 128 of the Housing Act 1985.

You will then have another 4 weeks to put your case to the District Valuer. He will also need to inspect your home. The District Valuer's valuation will be the one that counts. Even if it is higher than the Council's valuation, you will still have to accept it or withdraw your application to buy your home.

Other Questions about the Section 125 Notice:

If there is anything else in the Section 125 notice you are not sure about, you should contact the Council's Right to Buy and Leasehold Office on 01322 343832 or 01322 343211. If you and the Council disagree about something, you have the right to go to the County Court for a ruling. But this can be expensive and you should get legal advice first.