When I speak to people in my surgeries or in the street, one issue keeps coming up; affordable housing. Watford is a wonderful place to live, but it is an expensive one. With some of the highest house prices in the region getting on the housing ladder remains prohibitively expensive for many people.
This is why I was so pleased to see the Government’s announcements on the new ‘Right To Buy’ scheme which will mean many current social housing tenants will have the chance of a lifetime to buy their home with up to £75,000 discount on the price.
Until now, Watford residents were unfairly disadvantaged by being grouped with London in the amount of discount they could receive on the cost of their Council house if they wished to buy it. Under measures announced by the Government last week, everybody in the UK will be eligible for the new discount of up to £75,000 on the price of their house.
For all those who have more recently moved into local authority housing after it became under the remit of Watford Community Housing Trust will also have the chance to buy their property under the Right to Acquire scheme.
As well as providing affordable homes for existing tenants, under the new scheme all money received from the sale of the properties will go to providing more affordable housing in the local area, something that is greatly needed.
I will be working with both Watford Council and the Community Housing Trust to make sure as many people as possible can benefit from this new scheme.
Along with other incentives to help first time buyers, I am positive that this new Right to Buy scheme will make a real difference in locally and will give more people the chance of a generation to own their own home and create more affordable housing in Watford.
If anybody wants more information about how they can benefit they can get in touch by emailing me on richard.harrington.mp@parliament or calling my office on 0207 219 7180.