Pocket Living Help to Buy in London - What is a Pocket Home, by SAM Conveyancing. London Skyline showing London Bridge.
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Pocket Living Help to Buy in London

Caragh Bailey, Digital Marketing Manager
Last Updated: 04/05/2023
536
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:
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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Frequently Asked Questions
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Resale

The free mortgage consultation allows you to discuss your mortgage opportunities with one of our panel of FCA-regulated mortgage brokers. If you want to proceed, some mortgage products require a payment to the broker. You can disengage your Mortgage Broker before making a formal application, and no fee will be charged. SAM Conveyancing doesn't provide regulated mortgage advice.

Caragh Bailey, Digital Marketing Manager
Written by:

Caragh Bailey is a Lead Property Content Specialist at SAM Conveyancing, having joined the firm in 2020. With a portfolio of over 150 technical conveyancing, house survey and mortgage guides, she has become a primary authority on the end-to-end sale and purchase process.

Caragh specialises in complex legal workflows, including Help to Buy redemptions, equity transfers, shared ownership structures, trust deeds for tax planning, and joint ownership disputes. Her expertise extends to leasehold reform and RICS home surveys, where she provides clear, factual guidance on independent legal advice for specialist mortgage products and intricate ownership structures.

Andrew Boast of Sam Conveyancing
Reviewed by:

Andrew Boast FMAAT is a qualified accountant, conveyancing specialist and author with over 25 years of experience in the UK property sector. Since beginning his career in 2000 within established SRA and CLC-regulated conveyancing solicitor firms, Andrew has overseen the legal journeys of more than 75,000 clients.

He is the author of the property guide 'How to Buy a House Without Killing Anyone' and a frequent contributor to mainstream UK media on legislative updates, property law, first-time buyer guides, conveyancing best practices, and stamp duty changes. Andrew specialises in resolving complex title issues, property conflict disputes, and property tax options, streamlining the enquiry process to reduce transaction times and maintaining a client-friendly focus.

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