SO Hub: Buyback policies

Flexible Tenure and Buy Back Policy

‘Key points

• Each buy back request will be considered on individual and case by case basis only.
• We cannot buy back a property that is in negative equity – please speak to your mortgage lender in the first instance.
• We cannot buy back a property back to release equity to pay off Loans/debts.
• Any buy back must evidence that this will put you in a better financial position.
• A buy back request and decision can take time to review and seek relevant approvals and will require detailed consideration. This is not a quick fix solution.

Buy backs
We may consider buying back your home if it’s not under our flexible tenure policy.

We’ll only consider this for the following reasons:

• financial difficulty – this means at risk of repossession
• Building Safety – where you are unable to sell due to building safety matters and all alternative options have been considered
• safeguarding – including mental health and domestic violence
• mandatory rural buy back – if you have purchased 100% and the lease confirm the Mandatory Buy Back clause
• business need for repairs and maintenance – if Abri need to carry out extensive works to a property.

We can’t guarantee that we’ll approve buying back shares, as this isn’t a standard practice.

But, we’ll consider requests on a case by-case basis.’

Abri’s Flexible Tenure and Buyback Policy

Connect Leaseholder Handbook

Connect will not normally buy back shares in a shared ownership leasehold property.

In exceptional cases Connect will consider buying back all or part of a share in order to alleviate severe financial hardship. This is in the sole discretion of Connect which will have regard to the suitability of the property, the availability of funding and the case for financial relief to be made available.

Connect Housing’s Leaseholder Handbook

‘The landlord may offer to buy back your share, but only in exceptional circumstances and if they have funds available.’

Eastlight’s Key Information about the home document

LiveWest’s Shared Ownership Buy Back and Reverse Staircasing Policy

LiveWest will only consider buy-back or reverse staircasing in limited circumstances, as follows: We may consider buying back part, or all of the shares in a property if a shared owner is experiencing severe financial difficulties and is in rent and mortgage arrears. In all cases, the shared ownership leaseholder must first demonstrate that they have exhausted all other options available to them… Unless the lease makes buy-back mandatory, any buy-back is at our discretion. It is not a right or entitlement. LiveWest reserves the right to decline to buy-back properties, even in cases where all the criteria contained within this policy are met.

LiveWest’s Shared Ownership Buy Back and Reverse Staircasing Policy

FAQs

Although L&Q doesn’t publish a buyback policy on its website, buyback is referenced in FAQs.

Will L&Q consider buying back my home if I cannot sell it because of fire safety issues?

Under our current buyback policy, we’ll only consider purchasing your home if all of the following apply:

• Your home requires major remedial works that make it non-mortgageable to potential buyers
• These works will take more than 12 months to complete
• The works cannot be completed while you are living there

We will not consider a buyback if:

• you need to sell for financial reasons alone
• the remedial works are needed because of a service failure, a major incident, or an ‘Act of God’ (these are normally covered by insurance), or if the damage was caused by you
• your home is already subject to a Compulsory Purchase Order or Demolition Notice
• you have significant service charge or rent arrears and legal action has already started to recover the debt

L&Q FAQs

Shared ownership sales policy

Discretionary buy-backs

We must ensure that funding is available to enable discretionary buy-backs to proceed. We can use RCGF up to 70% of the market value of the share to be purchased. RCGF can be applied to buy-back shared ownership homes where:

• Owners have to move home due to exceptional circumstances
• The property is affected by building safety issues which are impacting the sale
• The outcome – the shared owner is able to sell their property and move home promptly

Discretionary buy-backs will be considered where the following conditions are satisfied:

• The property was grant funded;
• The shared ownership lease was issued after April 2006 and contains a clause giving us an option to indicate whether or not we’ll consider buying back the property;

However, Homes England would only expect us to exercise this option where the value of the property means that it hasn’t been possible to find a suitable nominee able to afford to purchase the existing share, and the shared owner has been unable to find a purchaser on the open market; and

We may also consider discretionary buy-back where there is a good business case or reason to do so. For example, serious building defects / fire safety risks where we need to decant to carry out the works.

Magna Housing’s sales policy

Leaseholder Assistance Policy

7.1. As a general principal, Midland Heart do not purchase back shares or properties. However, in exceptional circumstances that are not of the Shared Owners/Leaseholders own making (or where they can control/influence), and where the Shared Owner/Leaseholder can evidence that they cannot sell on the open market, we may consider buying the property back.

7.2. We will only consider a buy-back (purchasing the whole Leasehold interest) or ‘downward staircasing’ (reducing the percentage term owned by the Shared Owned) request in exceptional circumstances. Those exceptional circumstances may include those of exceptional hardship (financial) or severe impact on health and wellbeing.

7.3. We would expect the Shared Owner or Leaseholder to have exhausted all other options including the marketing of the property on the open market. Midland Heart will signpost to other agencies and organisations to be exhausted before a buy back will be considered.

7.4. Consideration for a buy-back will not be made if the Shared Owner or Leaseholder is in arrears at the time of application or has been in the last 12 months (unless the arrears are connected to the exceptional circumstances for seeking buyback/downward staircasing)

7.5. Any buy-back is subject to governance approval based on individual circumstance. A decision on whether to proceed with a buy-back can take up to 3 months. A further 3 to 4 months may then be taken for any transaction to conclude. The decision from our governance process will be final with no right of appeal (not subject to our Appeals Policy).

Midland Heart’s Leaseholder Assistance Policy

Buy Back Policy

We’ve seen a rising number of enquiries from shared ownership customers asking us to buy back their homes, especially where major remedial works have made properties difficult to sell or mortgage. In the absence of a clear framework, our response to these requests has risked being inconsistent or unclear, potentially leading to customer frustration and operational pressure. At the same time, our ability to offer buybacks is constrained by strict funding conditions set by Homes England and the Greater London Authority (GLA).

We will:

• Review each buyback request to confirm whether the specific criteria outlined below are met:

Your home needs major fire related remedial works that make it non mortgageable to at least 2 mortgage lenders. The works will take more than 12 months to complete and cannot be completed whilst you are living there.

And

Your home has been marketed for at least 6 months, and you have been unable to find a cash buyer.

There are no rent or service charge arrears on your account.

Moat Homes’ Buy Back Policy

Buy Back and Reverse Staircasing Policy

3.0 Residents in financial hardship

We understand that the financial situation of our residents can change, impacting their ability to afford their home.

We are only able to buy back or reverse staircase properties in the limited circumstances prescribed within this policy.

We are committed to supporting our residents and protecting them from financial distress. Residents of properties which are not deemed suitable for a buy-back or reverse staircasing will be signposted by the Local Officer to appropriate support offered either internally or externally in line with our Income Collection Policy.

4.0 Buy back process

Buy back is the process of buying back the lease at full equity from a resident or shared owner. We consider buying back a property in the following limited circumstances:

• Where there are immediate building health and safety concerns that cannot be sufficiently mitigated through on-site measures and require permanent or long-term decanting.
• Where we are undertaking regeneration or redevelopment.

6.0 Handling resident requests

6.1 Buy backs
Residents will not be able to make an application for a buy back as properties which meet the prescribed criteria (or form exceptions) will be identified and determined by us. However, residents are encouraged to discuss their circumstances with their Local Officer to support our understanding of their circumstances so the situation can be appraised properly.

Notting Hill Genesis Buy Back and Reverse Staircasing Policy

FAQs – Does Paradigm buy back leasehold properties? Can I sell shares back? We do not currently buy back individual properties or shares.

Paradigm’s FAQs

Shared Ownership Policy

We will consider buying back shared ownership properties on an exceptional basis in line with the Capital Funding Guides and subject to approval by our Capital Management Group (for Town and Country Housing, the Executive Management Team).

Peabody’s Shared Ownership Policy

Leasehold Purchase Policy

‘To achieve major regeneration projects, and other objectives, Poplar HARCA is likely to have cause to buy back leases from leaseholders in our blocks and some freehold properties.’

Poplar HARCA’s Leasehold Purchase Policy

Property Buy Back policy

This Policy does not apply to any leaseholder who is a shared owner. However we may be able to assist shared owners through the Flexible Tenure (reverse staircasing) policy.

Our note: Flexible Tenure Policy not published on website.

Riverside’s Property Buy Back Policy

Buy Back Policy

This Policy aims to help shared owners who are at risk of being re-possessed by their lender due to financial hardship and/or a change in circumstances that impacts their affordability. The objective of selling equity back to us is to help reduce outgoings and avoid shared owners losing their home.

The Policy also allows us to consider buying back when a resident needs to sell and is unable to do so because their block needs remedial works due to building safety issues and these works are yet to be firmly scheduled. The Policy also allows us to consider other exceptional circumstances.

Each buy back request is subject to an individual assessment to ensure eligibility for consideration. We’ll then confirm if we’re able to buy back shares (up to your full equity stake) under this Policy.

Any buy back is at our absolute discretion. It’s not a right or entitlement.

We are unable to buy back just because you are unable to sell your home. There must be other reasons meeting the criteria set out in this Policy.

Southern Housing will only usually be able to help if it has access to grant (known as Recycled Capital Grant Funding – RCGF) to help with the cost of buying back.

Without RCGF it is extremely unlikely we will be able to buy back.

1.10 Even if there is RCGF available it may only cover part of the cost of the buy back, which means additional funding will be needed to meet the full cost. There’s very limited additional funding available so we may not be able to buy back your shares even if you meet all the criteria in this Policy and RCGF funding is available.

Southern’s Buy Back Policy

How does shared ownership work?

On some rural sites the amount you can buy is capped at 80% to make sure that shared ownership will always be available in the area.

Another way this is done is called a ‘Buy Back lease’. This means if you buy 100% of the property the housing association will always buy the property back from you at the current market value. They will then resell the property at a lower share.

Two Rivers Housing: shared ownership information

Key Information about shared ownership

The landlord may offer to buy back your share, but only in exceptional circumstances and if they have funds available.

Vico Homes: Key information about shared ownership

Sales Policy

We may agree to buy back part or all of a property originally sold on a shared ownership basis, at current market value. Customers do not have any right or entitlement to ‘buy back’. Eligibility will be determined on a case by case basis and is subject to detailed affordability checks.

Vivid’s Sales Policy

Homeownership Policy

4.7 Buy Back
Wandle will only repurchase properties from homeowners in exceptional circumstances and with approval of the Investment Management Group. Each case will be assessed on an individual basis.

Examples of where it may be necessary to buy back a property include:

• Where extensive repair works are required to the block or property, necessitating the homeowner to be decanted into temporary accommodation for a considerable period.
• Where a street property requires such substantial repairs that the most cost- efficient expensive option is to buy back the property and then sell the freehold on the open market.
• During a mortgage repossession, to allow Wandle to sell to a new buyer.

Wandle’s Homeownership Policy

Homeownership management policy

Buyback and downward staircasing allows YH to purchase some or all the shares (equity) in a shared owners home and is there to support customers at risk of having their home repossessed due to financial hardship.

Buyback and downward staircasing only applies to shared owners who have not yet staircased to 100%.

In exceptional circumstances YH will consider buying the property back in full. In these situations, the shared owner will either leave the home or become a rented tenant and remain in the home and a YH customer. These options will be discussed during the buyback process.

YH will be able to consider a buyback or downward staircasing request if:

• It will prevent the shared owner from having their home repossessed by their lender
• The shared owner is in debt or not able to meet financial commitments due to a change in circumstances, such as reduced work hours, the loss of a job or a relationship breakdown resulting in reduced household income
• A change in circumstances which would make it more manageable, for example adapting a home due to disability or ill-health
• A large service charge/major works debt that is unaffordable and buyback is the only viable option for the shared owner
• The property cannot be sold due to building safety issues and alternative arrangements can’t be made, for example temporarily subletting the home

Buybacks and downward staircasing are only available if YH has Recycled Capital Grant Funding (RCGF) available and this will be subject to an internal assessment.

A home that cannot be sold on the open market is not a reason for YH proceed with a buyback. Unless it is due to building safety issues or that the home is no longer suitable as a shared ownership product.

Some shared ownership properties have a mandatory buyback clause. Here YH are required to buy the property back if the shared owner owns more than 80% of the property and wants to sell. Homes will be bought back at current market value and follow the process set out in the lease agreement. These homes will be resold as shared ownership once they have been bought back.

Yorkshire Housing’s Homeownership management policy

Shared Ownership & Leasehold Management Policy

6.20 Buy Back
6.20.1 YHG may buy back leases from leaseholders in exceptional circumstances
6.20.2 Each case will be assessed on its merits and Buy Back will depend on funds available for this purpose.

Your Housing Group’s Shared Ownership & Leasehold Management Policy