Councils face cash shortfalls

Councils across England are facing a huge drop in cash as right-to-buy sales fail. A snapshot across 10 councils has revealed that receipts from right to buy fell 89 per cent in the last year, from 380 homes in the third quarter of 07/08 to 40 for the same period in 08/09. The implication for councils is a ‘significant’ drop in income as less right to buy numbers means less money to maintain the housing stock – and more properties to maintain.