Overview

• FOI data from 53 English councils shows 20,836 homes sold under Right to Buy raised £2.25bn in five years, while 8,590 properties were purchased for £2.12bn, with at least 4,414 being former Right to Buy homes.
• In one case, a Hounslow property bought by a tenant for £272,662 in 2016 was repurchased by the council for £575,000 in 2023, representing a £302,338 loss on a single home.
• Hackney sold a home for £95,050 in 2014 and bought it back for £365,000 in 2021, while Cheshire West and Chester repurchased a property for £170,000 in 2024 that had sold for £16,000 in 2016.
• Councils cite urgent housing needs and homelessness pressures for buybacks, with Hackney highlighting reliance on central government and London mayoral grants to support the programme.
• The government says planned reforms will better protect social housing by extending discount repayment periods and tightening Right to Buy rules, as 1.33 million households remained on waiting lists in March 2024.