My Pocket is your buyer area of pocketliving.com and creating your profile means you go onto our database so that we can let you know when a home comes up that you’re eligible to buy.

Your profile is the information used to buy and what is stored as an owner once you’ve bought.

My Pocket is a self-service account maintained by you, so please make sure that you keep it completely up-to-date.

We have included handy features such as a borough finder to save you having to look up which council you live and work in, plus a tracking system to see how your purchase is progressing once you’ve been allocated a Pocket home.

When you create a My Pocket account, please make sure that the information entered is correct

The general rule of thumb is that your name should appear as it does on your passport, so whilst nicknames are fun, if you reserve a home this information goes to solicitors and changes will slow things down.

We only use your information in the following ways:

- To send you Pocket homes marketing
- To send you Pocket company updates
- To send to IMAs (Independent Mortgage Advisors) to establish affordability and assist with getting mortgages
- To send to Local Authorities to ensure our homes are sold to the intended audience
- To send to academic institutions for research purposes

We will not sell your data to marketing agencies in any circumstances!

We use the information in My Pocket to see if you’re eligible and can afford our developments

It depends on the borough and development, but this means that we usually only e-mail those who live or work in the borough, earn less than £90k and don’t own any property.

We don’t hold a waiting list. Instead, you can register your interest on our website at any time by creating a My Pocket account, and we will then email you when a development that you are eligible for is open for sales.

Remember, you are only able to purchase a Pocket home in the borough where you live or work, and other priorities may sometimes be imposed by local authorities on a site-by-site basis.

Very occasionally, at larger schemes, we are sometimes able to offer our homes to people who live or work in any London borough after a certain amount of time – check the page for each individual Pocket scheme for up to date information on availability.

If the borough where you live or work changes for any reason (for example, you move home or change job), you must update your My Pocket account.

We will get in touch with you when we have news about a development that you’re eligible for

Usually this will be to alert you to a sales launch, or to let you know our progress on a specific site

We usually start selling Pocket homes in a new development about 6 to 8 months before the building is finished, and this is when we send details to anyone with a My Pocket account who meets the eligibility criteria for the development

Until that point, all the information that we have on upcoming developments is in the “Our developments section under “Coming soon” or “For sale”

Pocket homes are only available to first time buyers who live or work in the borough of the development and earn below £90k (or a lower salary depending on requirements by the local authority). Therefore, if you live nearby but pay your council tax to a different borough, then sadly you won’t be eligible.

It’s just the way it works – local authority planning policy requires that we sell the homes to people in their borough, at least in the first instance.

Very occasionally, at larger schemes, we are sometimes able to offer our homes to people who live or work in any London borough after a certain amount of time – check the page for each individual Pocket scheme for up to date information on availability.

No! Pocket homes are 100% ownership, but sold at a minimum of 20% discount to the local market

We do this through intelligent design which enables us to build more homes on a development than traditional developers

Where Help to Buy is used you’ll be in a ‘shared equity’ arrangement but this is different to shared ownership as it is a personal to you and must be repaid when you sell your home, if you haven’t paid it off already by then.

This doesn’t apply to Pocket, as when we get permission to build we sign an agreement with the Local Authority which defines who we can sell to

This is different to other types of affordable housing.

At present, Pocket does not offer any rental apartments

We sell affordable one-bedroom apartments to people who meet the eligibility criteria for each development.

We’d love to be able to offer this but at the moment, as we have so many people register each week, we are only able to offer viewings for developments which have launched for sales and where you’re eligible to buy. If you are eligible to purchase a Pocket home and you have passed an affordability assessment, however, you will have an opportunity to see one at a viewing before submitting an Expression of Interest.

No. Pocket developments are car free, it is very expensive to provide on-site parking and we want to keep our costs down so we can keep our prices low.

As with any new build, you will not be eligible for a residents parking permit.

However, we always provide a safe and secure area for you to keep your bike.

The income field should reflect your pre-tax salary and if you get a bonus or commission, put half of the yearly amount you earn from this element as that’s how lenders view this type of income

If you’re buying with anyone else, combine all linked applicants incomes in the annual household income section and all applicants deposits in the maximum household deposit section. This means that if you’re buying with someone else, you should both have the same household income and household deposit information in both of your My Pocket accounts.

If you’re expecting a gift from a friend or family member, include this in your deposit amount, however if you need a Help to Buy equity loan then don’t include this here.

Generally, no. We follow government guidelines on affordable housing being for those who cannot afford to buy in the traditional way, so this almost always means a mortgage is required. There are, however, a few specific circumstances surrounding age, faith and disability where cash purchases can be requested.

Absolutely, we recognise that buying even an affordable home in London is a challenge and many of our buyers get help from parents or relatives. There is just one request – it really must be a true gift, it can’t be a loan in any way and it can’t be secured against your new home as a debt. Further details will be provided as part of the purchasing process.

The government’s Help to Buy equity loan scheme has now closed. If you already have a Help to Buy ISA, you can use this to help fund your purchase of a Pocket home. New Help to Buy ISAs can no longer be opened, but Lifetime ISAs are still available and can also be used when purchasing a Pocket home.

Prices vary depending on the development and the location, and are linked to current open market prices. We will release the price list for a particular development at the point of sales launch – usually 6 to 8 months prior to completion of the development. We always sell our apartments at a price at least 20% below local market value.

Yes. We are only able to sell to people who own no other property and you would need to have exchanged contracts for sale on any property so as to be eligible to apply for a Pocket home. Occasionally, the eligibility criteria for a specific development may require someone to be a true first-time buyer (which means that anyone who has ever owned any property would not be eligible).

Yes! Most of our buyers are sole buyers but we welcome couples, too. If you’re buying together then both of your names will need to go on the mortgage and lease. Your income must be £90K or less together and neither of you can own property, however just one of you needs to live or work in the borough of the development. If you’re applying together then both of you should create a My Pocket account then let us know and we will link your profiles in our database.

It’s difficult to answer this question - everybody’s circumstances are different, the deposits people have vary and the prices of Pocket homes vary. You must earn below £90k, and the average income of a Pocket buyer is closer to £40k. We suggest you speak with an Independent Mortgage Advisor (IMA) about your individual circumstances and would recommend Censeo as an IMA who are familiar with obtaining mortgages on Pocket homes. You can get in touch with Censeo at www.censeo-financial.com.

Stamp duty is not included in the price of Pocket apartments.  You will need to pay stamp duty on your Pocket home according to the usual rules, which depend upon the sale price. You can do a quick check using an online calculator, and your solicitor will also be able to advise on this issue.

This could be for a number of reasons. We only contact those eligible to buy about the sales launch so if you don’t meet the eligibility criteria according to the information in your My Pocket profile, you won’t hear from us. Alternatively, you may not have created a My Pocket account in time to be notified about the sales launch, as we tend to e-mail eligible buyers at least two weeks before the viewing date. If you think this might be the case, get in touch with our Sales Team to find out whether you are still in time to book a viewing.

Censeo usually receives a very high volume of Pocket assessments, sometimes in the hundreds. They often have to contact you to see if you can increase your deposit if you are nearly there, or to clarify aspects of your finances. Bear with Censeo and if the viewing date is within the next 48 hours then give them a call to see where they are up to.

Create a My Pocket account
Once you have done this we will be in touch once a development which you’re eligible for is launching for sale. We generally do this about 6 months before the development is ready so that you can move in just after the builder has finished it.

Check your e-mails!
When we are ready to start sales, we will e-mail you telling you exactly what to do. Sometimes e-mails go into junk folders so keep an eye on that.

Get your affordability assessment from Censeo
Provided that we have launched the development for sale, there are available homes and you’re eligible to buy, we will advise you to get an affordability assessment from Censeo in order to book a viewing. This is a short and simple online form which indicates if your finances are sufficient for the available lenders. Censeo will review this and once you’ve passed, you will be able to book a viewing and submit an Expression of Interest via your My Pocket account. We love organised buyers but you can’t obtain a Censeo assessment until you’re eligible to buy and the scheme has launched for sale!

Be aware that as the mortgage market can change, the affordability assessment is only valid for one development and for one month. If you’ve been assessed by Censeo before, whether for a Pocket home or any other home, you’ll still need to do this again. Once we have received your assessment the salary and deposit fields in your My Pocket account cannot be changed as this would invalidate your assessment.

Viewing
Once you’ve passed the Censeo assessment you can book a viewing in My Pocket. As our viewings tend to fill very quickly, try and be as flexible as you can with times. We often hold viewings on a different development to where you’d be buying but you’ll get to see a very comparable property, plus we’ll have the brochure and floor plans of course.

Expression of Interest (EOI)
After viewing you’ll have the chance to submit an EOI, which is done by choosing up to 10 homes in order of preference. We suggest that you do select 10 as this will maximise your chances of getting a home! You must do this by the deadline shown in My Pocket otherwise you will miss the boat. Don’t forget to complete the short survey that we are doing in conjunction with Harvard University!

Allocation
Sadly, Pocket homes are often oversubscribed. This means that we have an allocations policy, agreed with the Local Authority, to ensure things are as fair as possible. At this stage everyone will already meet the eligibility criteria, so we run a lottery of EOIs to choose the lucky buyers. This lottery is weighted so that those who need our discounted price the most will have the highest chance of being chosen. We plan to let you know whether you have been successful within 10 working days of the EOI deadline.

Offer Letter
If you’re allocated a Pocket home, we will upload an Offer Letter in My Pocket which is valid for 5 days. It’ll contain a clear timescale of what should happen when and what you should do next, but in summary it’s about uploading evidence of your eligibility, instructing solicitors and your IMA, plus paying your reservation fee.

Reservation
Once you’ve uploaded evidence of your eligibility, confirmed your solicitor and IMA and paid the reservation fee, we will instruct the solicitors and they will start the legal process of home buying, called ‘conveyancing’.

Mortgage offer
As Pocket homes are an innovative form of affordable housing, the banks and building societies are a little slow to keep up. Therefore we really recommend you use Censeo to help with the mortgage side of things as they know exactly what to do and which lenders are available. Don’t delay submitting your mortgage application as lenders have a quota on each development and you may find your choice is reduced.

Exchange contracts
Lots will happen leading up to exchange of contracts so we won’t go into too much detail here, but you usually exchange a month from instructing your solicitor. Whilst you won’t have seen your exact home at this point, there shouldn’t be any surprises as you’ll have seen another Pocket home at the viewing, plus the detailed brochure and floorplans. When you exchange you transfer between 5 – 10% of the purchase price to your solicitor and once exchange has taken place, you are legally committed to your purchase.

Meet your neighbours at the residents drinks
We will hold an event for everyone to meet each other before you move in so that you’ll know your neighbours from the get-go. Please do attend – these events are a lot of fun and the more, the merrier!

Move in!
As soon as the builder finishes your home, the solicitors will set a date for you to get your keys and move in. Our Customer Care Team will provide you with a home induction tour so that you know how it all works when you move in, and we will also ask you to complete a short survey of your buying experience.

Yes. Pocket is registered with the New Homes Quality Board to ensure the build quality of our homes and the customer service provided. For further information on NHQB you can visit For Homebuyers (nhqb.org.uk)*.

*This applies to all current and upcoming Pocket developments except for our Addiscombe Grove CR0 development which is covered by the Consumer Code for Home Builders.

Section 106 agreements, also known as planning obligations, are agreements between developers and Local Authorities that are negotiated as part of a condition of planning consent. In the case of Pocket homes, the Section 106 agreement means that the home is only available to buy for people who meet specific eligibility criteria. These restrictions stay with Pocket homes in perpetuity, meaning Pocket owners are obliged to find a similar buyer when they are ready to sell.

You can only sell to people who meet the eligibility criteria applicable to the development (as you did when you bought your Pocket home): this will usually mean that they have to live or work in the borough and they cannot own any other property. Pocket will be able to guide you through the process when the time comes. You will not be able to sell until you have owned the property for at least one year.

Pocket now offers a resale marketing service. Our fee to the seller for this service is 1% of the sale price plus VAT. This includes the 0.5% certification fee already chargeable as stipulated in your lease. If you are interested in finding out more, please contact resale@pocketliving.com.

Only in very specific circumstances which are temporary and unique to you, otherwise it’s a no as Pocket homes are designed for first time buyers to occupy themselves. Contact us and we will send you further information which sets out the process for requesting consent.

Yes! Selling to an eligible person is something that’s in your lease and is separate to whether you have a government equity loan or not, which will have its own terms and conditions.

Pocket homes can only be purchased by local people who don’t already own their own home. You are not allowed to rent out your Pocket home without permission, and then only for a limited period of time, and Pocket checks annually that the owner is living in their Pocket home (via an Annual Verification Process). Then, when an owner wants to sell their Pocket home, they have to find a buyer (checked by Pocket) who also meets the relevant eligibility criteria.

For the moment, the vast majority of Pocket homes are 38m2 one bedroom. We occasionally have a very small proportion of discounted two-bedroom homes on a few developments, which are incredibly popular and prioritised for families.

There is an in-depth snagging and de-snagging process between the builder and Pocket before you move in, however slight variations are very normal and to be expected. If an issue arises as a result of faulty workmanship or materials then Pocket will look in to these for up to two years after your home was built.
After this time you will be responsible as a homeowner for all repairs although you’ll still be protected against major defects by your building warranty. If you find any cosmetic decorative issues in your home then these should be raised as soon as possible, as it is often difficult to determine their cause after you have moved in.
If you have a fault with any of your appliances, these come with their own warranty which you should activate when you move in and any issues are reported direct to the manufacturer.

Yes, all Pocket homes have a 10 year building warranty, valid from the completion of the building. Our building warranties are usually provided by NHBC, Premier Guarantee – if you’re in the process of buying a Pocket home, you can check with us which warranty will apply to the development at which you’re purchasing. Building warranties such as these protect homeowners in case there are structural problems with the building as a whole, rather than applying to individual homes.

A Managing Agent will run shared areas and charge this to residents through the service charge. You also have lots of input through a Residents' Management Company, called an RMC, which all Pocket owners are a member of. One or two of the owners in a block can even become Directors of the RMC and will feed back your views on how you want your building to be run to the Managing Agent. The Managing Agent also arranges buildings insurance and handles solicitors enquiries if you sell your Pocket home.

Of course! We receive many e-mails and phone calls and have to prioritise people buying a home from us already, so please do read all of these FAQ before dropping us a line as you may find your question is already answered here. If you have a simple question you can tweet us @pocket_living, if your question is about buying a home e-mail sales@pocketliving.com or if you’ve already bought it’s customercare@pocketliving.com and we will come back to you as soon as we can.