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SCHEDULE 2PART V AS IT APPLIES IN CASES WHERE THE RIGHT TO ACQUIRE APPLIES

THE RIGHT TO ACQUIRE

The right to acquire

The right to acquire

118.—(1) A tenant of a registered social landlord who satisfies the conditions in section 16(1)(a) and (b) of the [1996 c. 52.] Housing Act 1996 has the right to acquire, that is to say, the right, in the circumstances and subject to the conditions and exceptions stated in the following provisions of this Part—

(a)if the dwelling-house is a house and the landlord owns the freehold, to acquire the freehold of the dwelling-house,

(b)if the landlord does not own the freehold or if the dwelling-house is a flat (whether or not the landlord owns the freehold), to be granted a lease of the dwelling-house.

(2) Where a tenancy is a joint tenancy then, whether or not each of the joint tenants occupies the dwelling-house as his only or principal home, the right to acquire belongs jointly to all of them or to such one or more of them as may be agreed between them; but such an agreement is not valid unless the person or at least one of the persons to whom the right to acquire is to belong occupies the dwelling-house as his only or principal home.

Qualifying period for right to acquire

119.—(1) The right to acquire does not arise unless the period which, in accordance with Schedule 4, is to be taken into account for the purposes of this section is at least two years.

(2) Where the tenancy is a joint tenancy the condition in subsection (1) need be satisfied with respect to one only of the joint tenants.

Exceptions to the right to acquire

120.  The right to acquire does not arise in the cases specified in Schedule 5 (exceptions to the right to acquire).

Circumstances in which the right to acquire cannot be exercised

121.—(1) The right to acquire cannot be exercised if the tenant is obliged to give up possession of the dwelling-house in pursuance of an order of the court or will be so obliged at a date specified in the order.

(2) The right to acquire cannot be exercised if the person, or one of the persons, to whom the right to acquire belongs—

(a)has a bankruptcy petition pending against him,

(c)is an undischarged bankrupt, or

(d)has made a composition or arrangement with his creditors the terms of which remain to be fulfilled.