Pocket Living Help to Buy in London
(Last Updated: 04/05/2023)
04/05/2023
538
3 min read
Pocket Living offer affordable housing to local first time buyers in London. They are unique in their design, which reduces development cost, keeping their prices low.
The 'pocket homes' are typically one bedroom flats, which are sold at least 20% under local market value.
Like all affordable housing schemes there are restrictions as to who can buy with them.
Am I eligible for pocket living?
To be eligible to buy a pocket home:
- You must live or work in the borough of the development
- You must be a first time buyer
- Your income must fall within the Mayor of London's threshold for affordable housing (currently £90,000)
There are also restrictions on the properties themselves:
- You must live in the property (this is verified annually)
- You cannot let or sublet the flat to anyone else
- You must re-sell the property through Pocket Living, who will ensure it goes on to help another eligible buyer get onto the property ladder.
Which London Boroughs have Pocket Living Help to Buy?
Pocket Living developments For Sale:
Pocket Living Developments Coming Soon:
There are further completed developments all over London, where properties will occasionally come up for resale.
What is a pocket home?
They are mostly one bedroom flats with a modular design:
- Double bedroom with full height windows
- Open plan kitchen/living/dining toom with full height windows
- Wet room with walk in shower
They are small, but feature high ceilings and floor to ceiling windows to make the spaces feel light and airy, with a small utility cupboard for storage and a storage area in the bedroom.
There are now a limited number of 2 and 3 bedroom properties available, for which families will have priority.
How big is a pocket home?
The one bedroom homes are 38 square metres, or 409 square feet. They have no private gardens or parking spaces, but do come with a secure area to keep your bike.
Looking at buying your first home?
You should get a mortgage in principle before you make an offer.
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Written by:
Caragh Bailey
Caragh is an excellent writer and copy editor of books, news articles and editorials. She has written extensively for SAM for a variety of conveyancing, survey, property law and mortgage-related articles.
Reviewed by:
Andrew Boast
Andrew started his career in 2000 working within conveyancing solicitor firms and grew hands-on knowledge of a wide variety of conveyancing challenges and solutions. After helping in excess of 50,000 clients in his career, he uses all this experience within his article writing for SAM, mainstream media and his self published book How to Buy a House Without Killing Anyone.
