Eligibility
Cornwall Council checks the eligibility of purchasers who are looking to buy affordable housing in Cornwall.
This includes Section 106 discounted sale, equity share and local needs housing.
These properties are usually advertised with:
- local estate agents and
- on the main online estate agency sites such as Rightmove and Zoopla or
- through the Cornwall Community Land Trust
For new build properties these will also be advertised with the developer in their sales office and their own websites.
From October 2022, the Council no longer nominates buyers for these types of properties. This is now down to the developer or owner to chose the proceeding applicant. You need to have viewed and made an offer on the property to be considered. You must meet the provisions in the Section 106 agreement to be eligible.
You will only need to complete the assessment process if you have been chosen as the proceeding applicant by the estate agent or developer. The Affordable Home Ownership Service will then verify your eligibility. You will be assessed against the criteria in the Section 106 agreement for the property.
If you are looking for a shared ownership home you will need to:
- check you're eligible and find a provider on the gov.uk website
or - contact the registered providers in your area to see what properties they are advertising.
Please note that ex Council Right to Buy (Section 157) properties have a separate process.
Find out if you are eligible and what evidence you will need
If you are looking to buy an affordable home and need to take out a mortgage the Council will need evidence of a mortgage in principal. We will need this before we can consider an application from you. Lenders are currently requiring deposits of 10% - 15% of the sale price.
If you are eligible for a property and proceed with the sale, we will require the final mortgage offer to state that the property is a Section 106 affordable home. The mortgage offer will need to include the discount percentage of the property you are purchasing.
We recommend you should also seek:
- Legal advice
- Advice from an independent financial advisor
- Advice from your bank or mortgage provider
- Advice agencies such as Citizens Advice
- Government websites such as Own your Home
What schemes are on offer in Cornwall
There are many affordable home ownership options available in Cornwall: