Homes suitable for occupation by the elderly

Your landlord may refuse to let you buy on the grounds that your home is particularly suitable for occupation by elderly people (under paragraph 11 of Schedule 5 to the Housing Act 1985). If so, you can ask a Residential Property Tribunal to decide if your landlord is right. But you must ask them within 56 days after the landlord has refused to sell your home. If you don’t ask in time, you lose this right of appeal.

What the law says:

You do not have the Right to Buy if your home:

1. Is particularly suitable for occupation by elderly persons, taking into account its location, size, design, heating system and other features;
2. Was let to you for occupation by a person aged 60 or over, whether they were the tenant or not; and
3. Was first let (to you or someone else) before 1 January 1990.
4. When considering if your home is ‘particularly suitable’, your landlord must ignore features that you have provided (for example, a central heating system).