Council body calls for tighter rules on sale of social and affordable homes to non-resident buyers

The Local Councils Network (LCN) has called on the government to tighten up rules on sales of subsidised housing to non-resident private buyers, after figures hit record levels last year.

Housing associations in England have sold roughly 25,000 social and affordable homes to private buyers who do not live in them since 2018/19, according to research based on Freedom of Information requests by the LCN.

In 2024/25 alone, housing associations sold 5,250 homes, the highest figure on record and up 89% in just two years.

These sales, which come on top of the homes sold to tenants under Right to Acquire or Right to Buy, can help housing associations fund development, regeneration and refurbishment.

However, there are currently no requirements for funds raised to be reinvested locally or in homes for social rent, a tenure which the LCN said was disproportionately affected by sales. 

The body argues that current policy is leading to a drift in provision away from the most affordable tenures and results in a loss of subsidised homes in areas where they are more difficult to replace.

 Cllr Denise O’Callaghan, executive member for housing at South Hams District Council, said the impact was “felt acutely in our smaller rural and coastal communities, where housing options are already extremely limited”.

“Once a social home is lost, it can be incredibly difficult to replace because of land availability, development constraints and the high cost of housing in many parts of the district,” she said.

Cllr Paul Harvey, social housing spokesperson for the LCN, added: “It cannot be right that some housing associations are selling homes in the parts of the country where they’re most needed and failing to replace them with homes nearby that are equally affordable”.

The body has called on the government to introduce a statutory right of first refusal for councils and other registered providers at existing use value, and to make public funding dependent on registered providers adopting a code of conduct for disposals.

Despite the increase in sales of this kind, housing associations recorded a 2,900-home net gain in social rent homes in 2024/25, though this represented around 7% of the net gain across all tenures.

Alistair Smyth, director of policy and research at the National Housing Federation, said that housing associations “take their role as long-term stewards of their homes and communities seriously”, explaining that “sometimes this means taking the strategic decision to sell properties in order reinvest in improving the quality of existing homes for our residents”.

He pointed out that housing associations spent a record £9.7bn on repairs and maintenance last year and that the sales had not resulted in a net loss of social homes.

 “The number of social homes owned by housing associations has consistently grown in recent years, and they are building on this by increasing starts on new homes for social rent by 57% in just one year,” he said. 

“We will continue to work with ministers and councils to ensure that we can achieve our shared aims of keeping as many homes within the social housing sector as possible, while ensuring we can continue to invest in improvements.”