Swap your council home

If you're a council or housing association tenant, you may be able to swap your home with another tenant. This is called a mutual exchange.

Mutual exchange is often the quickest way to move, and you can swap with a tenant living anywhere in the UK.

Mutual exchange scheme

Mutual exchange is simply a home swap between two tenants. This could involve exchanging a council house, flat, bungalow, maisonette or any other type of property.

You can choose to swap homes locally or move to another part of the country. The biggest challenge is often finding another tenant who wants to swap with you.

You can either home swap with one tenant, known as a direct exchange, or you could try to find a three (or more) way property exchange.

Transferring tenants

Council tenants can apply to move to another council or housing association property. Your priority on the transfer list will be based on an assessment of your housing needs.

Tenants who are in breach of their tenancy agreement, for example rent arrears, condition of property or antisocial behaviour, will only be considered once the issue has been resolved.

Separate council tenants can make a joint transfer application if they want to live together, but both current tenancies must end if they accept an offer of a new home.

All transfer applications are subject to checks on your property condition and tenancy conduct. Tenants with Introductory Tenancies can register, but will not be considered for a move until their tenancy becomes secure.

Sometimes, to help us manage our housing stock, transfer applicants may be given priority over others on the housing register. When this applies, it will be clearly shown in the property advert.

Find out more about how transfer applications are assessed by reading our housing allocations policy.

• Housing Allocations Policy

Tenant Incentive Scheme

We operate a Tenant Incentive Scheme to encourage people to move from family-sized homes to smaller, non-family housing, or who no longer need fully adapted wheelchair‑accessible accommodation.

To help with moving costs, we offer a £1,000 grant, plus an extra £1,000 for each additional bedroom you give up. This payment is made once you have signed the tenancy for your new home.

The move must be to another council or housing association property through our choice based lettings scheme and applies to:

• council tenants over the age of 55 who are under-occupying homes
• council tenants who occupy fully adapted, wheelchair-accessible accommodation and no longer require the use of these facilities.

Any debt owed to us will be recovered from this grant.

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