What Everyone in the Armed Forces Community Should Check Before January 2026
05 Jan 2026
Housing
Housing support for veterans, serving personnel and military families in the UK
Your main options after service are buying, renting privately, social housing or specialist veteran housing. The right one depends on where you are now and how long you have to sort it.
Explore by Topic
Homelessness and crisis support
Emergency housing for veterans, housing charities and legal protections.
Buying a home and renting
Forces Help to Buy, mortgages for veterans, shared ownership, social housing rights and council housing for veterans.
Leaving service accommodation
The 93-day rule, transition planning, bridging housing and local authority support.
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Leaving Service Accommodation
SFA is a licence, not a tenancy, and that catches people out. The Defence Infrastructure Organisation can’t give you a tenancy reference, so private landlords may ask for other proof. This guide covers your Notice to Vacate, stays, move-out appointments, charges and what happens if you’re still in the property when your notice ends.
Buying a Home
Forces Help to Buy is for regular serving personnel, so check it before you leave. Once you’re out, you buy through the same routes as everyone else, including mortgages and Shared Ownership. This section also covers private renting, social housing applications and what the Armed Forces Covenant means for you.
Renting & Social Housing
Renting privately works the same as it does for civilians, but some landlords and letting agents are Forces-friendly and offer more flexibility on short tenancies, relocation or variable income. If you apply for social housing, councils must not disadvantage you because of frequent moves, postings or time spent in SFA. Housing associations also offer affordable long-term rentals, and charities and Armed Forces organisations can help with temporary housing or rent if you need support urgently.
Homelessness & Emergency Housing Support
You don’t have to be sleeping rough to get help. If you’re sofa surfing, facing eviction or about to leave service accommodation with nowhere to go, ask now. This section covers Op FORTITUDE, what your council has to do and the charities that can help.
Who to contact
Housing help if you’re homeless or at risk
Op FORTITUDE: 0800 952 0774
Transition and civilian housing advice
Defence Transition Services: DBSVets-DTS-Central@mod.gov.uk
Notice to Vacate or staying longer in SFA
Loss of Entitlement team: DIORDAccn-LOETeam@mod.gov.uk
Forces Help to Buy
FHTB team: 0141 224 3600, option 4
Social housing or homelessness applications
Your local council’s housing team
Frequently asked questions
How long do I have to leave SFA after discharge?
It depends on the type of discharge. On a normal discharge, your 93 days’ notice is usually timed to end around your last day of service, rather than starting afterwards. A medical discharge also gets 93 days from the discharge date, and a disciplinary discharge gets 28 days’ notice.
What happens if I’m still in SFA when my notice ends?
Your case will be reviewed and the MOD may start court action to recover the property. You’ll be charged until a formal move-out has taken place, so keep looking for housing and talk to the Loss of Entitlement team.
Can veterans use Forces Help to Buy?
No. It’s for regular serving personnel, and you need more than six months left to serve when you apply. If you leave with some of the loan still to repay, the balance is taken from your terminal benefits.
Do veterans get priority for council housing?
Not automatically, and it doesn’t guarantee you a home. In England, former Regulars are exempt from local connection tests, and councils have guidance on giving Armed Forces applicants appropriate priority. Rules differ in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Will the council house me if I’m homeless?
In England, you’re in priority need if you’re vulnerable as a result of having served. The council will look at things like how long you served and the type of service. Even if you don’t meet that test, ask for help as early as you can.
93 days: the deadline to plan around
A Notice to Vacate normally gives you 93 days to move out of Service Family Accommodation (SFA).
- Normal or medical discharge: your notice usually arrives 93 to 120 days before your discharge date.
- Medical discharge: you also get 93 days’ continued use of your SFA from your discharge date.
- Disciplinary discharge: you get 28 days’ notice.
- Relationship breakdown: you get 93 days’ notice.
Notice can’t be issued any earlier, but you don’t need to wait for it to start planning.
Read our leaving service accommodation guide
Where are you right now?
Still serving
You have the most options now, and some of them end when you leave.
- Check Forces Help to Buy. You can borrow up to 50% of your salary, capped at £25,000, interest-free. You need more than six months left to serve when you apply.
- Book a Civilian Housing Brief. These Defence Transition Services sessions are open to all service personnel and families at any stage of their career.
- Work out what you can afford. Compare buying and renting before you set a leaving date.
About to leave
- Ask for transition support. Your welfare team can refer you to Defence Transition Services, or you can refer yourself.
- Contact your council early. Don’t wait for your notice to expire. Some councils only offer housing once an eviction date has been set, so ask how yours handles this.
- Ask about a stay if you need longer. If you have a signed tenancy or an agreed mortgage and a completion date, you can ask the Loss of Entitlement team for extra time. Stays last up to three months and aren’t guaranteed.
- In Single Living Accommodation? You generally can’t stay past your discharge date, so plan earlier.
Already left
It doesn’t matter how long you’ve been out. You can still get help.
- Apply for social housing. In England, councils can’t use a local connection test to keep former Regulars off the housing register.
- Look at veteran housing providers. Haig Housing offers affordable rented homes, and Stoll provides supported housing.
- Get advice. VALOUR is the government’s first point of contact for veterans looking for support.
