Selling your home in our affordable housing scheme

How to sell your home if you bought it under our affordable housing scheme.

Check your Section 106 Agreement

The Section 106 Agreement for your property should outline how to sell your house.

This includes: 

  • getting a valuation
  • stating the maximum percentage of the market value you can advertise and sell your home
  • who can buy your home
  • buyer approval

If you need help with the terms of your Section 106, you can ask your solicitor for advice or contact us.

Email: affordable.housing@westmorlandandfurness.gov.uk
Telephone: 0300 373 3300

Provide a Notice of Sale

Before you advertise your home for sale, you must give us written notice of your intention to sell.

Find a RICS chartered surveyor

Before you can put your home up for sale, you’ll need to pay for an open market valuation by a chartered surveyor and submit the report to us.

The surveyor must be:

  • chartered with the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS)
  • local – familiar with the local market and valuing properties in the area
  • able to visit your home and use our template below for their report 

RICS standard valuation template (PDF , 395KB)

If your surveyor does not use our template, the valuation will be rejected. Your surveyor will have to resubmit it using the template.

Submit your open market valuation

Email: affordable.housing@westmorlandandfurness.gov.uk

Our independent valuers will check the report and provide price confirmation. We’ll email you to confirm the valuation price, and the maximum price your home can be sold and advertised for.

If there are any problems with the valuation, we will let you know. You won’t be able to market your home until they are fixed.

Marketing your home

When the valuation is confirmed, you can advertise your home for sale.

All publicity must state that:

  • your home is an affordable property
  • your home has a Section 106 Agreement
  • buyers must be approved by Westmorland and Furness Council

We will email our Discounted Sale or Low Cost properties list when your home is for sale.

We need your formal consent to pass your details onto our waiting list.

Approving a buyer

We must approve buyers before sales can go through. Interested buyers need to submit an application to us. 

Potential buyers have 10 working days from the day the property is marketed to submit their application.

Discounted Sale/Low Cost home application form  (PDF , 235KB)

It can take up to 10 working days to process an application. 

The successful buyer will get an approval letter from us. They will need the letter to buy your home.

If your home is struggling to sell

Some Section 106 agreements have a process to relax selling requirements, called cascading.

Cascading may be available when:

  • your home has been for sale for a certain period of time with no buyer
  • you’ve done everything you can to market your home

You will need to tell us how your home has been marketed. 

All Section 106 Agreements are different. Check with your solicitor or with us if you’re not sure your agreement includes cascading.

Shared Ownership and Shared Equity 

If you want to sell a Shared Ownership or Shared Equity home, contact your Housing Association.

Contact us

Email: affordable.housing@westmorlandandfurness.gov.uk
Telephone: 0300 373 3300

Address:
Affordable Housing Team
Voreda House 
Portland Place
Penrith 
Cumbria
CA11 7BF