mid twenties looking to buy first home with gf

Jowo_2

FirstTimeBuyer wrote: »

as I'm concerned I've paid tax/NI since I was 14, I have every right to be a council tenant even if we earn £45k between us.

This is probably a sentiment shared by the majority of tenants on the waiting list for social housing. At the last estimate, it was two million households, representing 5 million people.

http://www.lga.gov.uk/lga/core/page.do?pageId=566381

But the principles of social housing is that it is for people who can't afford to rent in the private sector or buy their own home.

poppysarah

I think you are delusional if you think you will get a mortgage without having saved a deposit. The inability to save and reluctance to do so seems slightly strange.

Having a child will mean making sacrifices. Are you prepared for those?

You already have one child, so whats the rush? And bear in mind you higher earning gf might not want to go back to work once you've had a baby, so your lack of savings would be terrible.

You can't have what you want. You sadly can't afford what you want.
Life's really touch and you're going to have to save.

Three years ago it wouldn't have been a problem and you could have borrowed insane amounts of money - but the overlending has causes massive house price inflation which is keeping you off the ladder at the moment.

Jowo_2

FirstTimeBuyer wrote: »

my local council makes absolutely no distinction for 'need' based on income, unless of course you are unemployed or homeless.
.

True, but its hard to demonstrate need when a person presents themselves with sufficient income to rent in the private sector. They are 'blind' to income but their measurements are based on a variety of factors that tend to sift out those who are reasonably affluent.

Read the points system here

What are points?

The law states that in allocating housing 'reasonable preference' must be given to certain categories of persons. These categories are:

• people who are homeless
• people living in insanitary, overcrowded or unsatisfactory housing
• people who need to move on medical or welfare grounds
• people who need to move to a particular locality in the district of the authority, where failure to meet that need would cause hardship to themselves or to others

What other factors are taken into account?

Other factors which a points system may take into account could include:

• residency - do you live in the area where you are applying for housing?
• financial circumstances - are you on benefits or in paid employment
• tenancy record - for example, have you a good record or have you accrued rent arrears?
• time on register - you may gain extra points if you have been on the housing register for sometime

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/HomeAndCommunity/SocialHousingAndCareHomes/ApplyingForACouncilHome/DG_10029763

nervousftb_3

i don't mean to be rude, but in your situation i wouldn't even be considering social housing if i earned the same combined income as yourself and your girlfriend. in fact, a few months ago my partner and i (who earn less than you) bought our first property together. how? by living like complete paupers for years and saving hard to get a deposit together. we didn't want to live with our parents forever, so we rented privately, didn't go out, cut down our spending to an absolute minimum and then bought our own house knowing we had worked hard for it.

it seems to me that you want things you can't afford (house, baby) and as you haven't saved any money you want the council to house you instead. regardless of it being assessed or not on income, you will such a low priority on the list, i can't imagine you wold ever be housed to be honest. you can easily afford to rent privately, so why not do that?! plenty of people do it, and you probably wouldn't be spending much more than you are now. then in a few years you can have saved a deposit and will be able to buy WHEN YOU CAN AFFORD IT.

i'm sorry to be harsh, but to be honest i feel it is a bit cheeky of you to expect the council to house you when you can easily afford to live quite happily on your wages. social housing is surely intended for those in genuine need (unemployed and cannot work for whatever reason, made homeless through no fault of their own, young single parent etc) rather than a young, healthy, employed couple with cars and a perfectly acceptable standard of living.

Jowo_2

FirstTimeBuyer wrote: »

I've set out the reasons for my 'reluctance' to save for a deposit for the next ten years.

Yes, you have demonstrated a reluctance to accept what you've interpreted as lifestyle advice from other posters.

They have been patiently explaining to you that your aversion to saving for a deposit, failure to repair your credit record and desire to start a second family don't make you a strong candidate to be catapulted into subsidised housing which is generally designed to house those in poverty and dire need.

You've demonstrated a sense of entitlement to social housing in averse proportion to its availability - there are huge constraints facing every one of the millions on the list for social housing who all equally feel they deserve it for one reason or another.

Jowo_2

FirstTimeBuyer wrote: »

social housing is for everyone!

.

No, it's not. It's for those in housing need and allocated to the needy on a strict criteria which prioritises the neediest. The fact that virtually anyone can apply is entirely distinct from their chances of getting allocated it.

nervousftb_3

FirstTimeBuyer wrote: »

I hope living like paupers, and sacrificing any sort of standard of living makes you feel better about having owned your own home. When my girlfriend and I have settled into our nice house, having had the wedding we dreamed of, and our new arrival safely in his or her own room, I will feel just as satisfied.

i was always brought up to believe it was best to work for the things you wanted in life, and that is exactly what i have done. so yes, it was worth all the sacrifices (a few years of scrimping out of a whole lifetime in our own home, not that much of a sacrifice after all). i am not saying that everyone has to be a home owner to feel 'satisfied', just that that was my own personal choice and i am pleased to have a achieved what i set out to do (rather than the smug tone of your post about the 'wedding we dreamed of' - how are you paying for that out of interest?!)

and yes, i agree social housing is for everyone. however, i feel that for me personally, i would only wish to use it as a last resort if i could not afford another option, thereby leaving social housing for those genuinely in need. if you are on the list and they give you a house, then of course you are not doing anything wrong, but IMO you don't need to be on the list, and so could be in for a long wait.

Idiophreak

FirstTimeBuyer wrote: »

I hope living like paupers, and sacrificing any sort of standard of living makes you feel better about having owned your own home. When my girlfriend and I have settled into our nice house, having had the wedding we dreamed of, and our new arrival safely in his or her own room, I will feel just as satisfied.

You sure about that?

As I was walking down the street with the pram I'd be thinking..."see that man, baby..he helps to subsidise our house (yes he does! yes he does!)...because daddy can't provide for you on his own (no he can't, no he can't!).

I would put my baby to bed and I'm not sure I'd be saying "I know this isn't the nicest area, baby (no it's not! no it's not!)...I know that living in social housing I've exposed you and your mummy to higher rates of burglary, violent crimes and antisocial behaviour (yes I have! yes I have!). I know that you'll probably get lower grades at schoolbecause we live here(yes you will!). It's OK, though....Mummy and I had the wedding of our dreams..wooo!"

Not really having a go, but personally I wouldn't chose to live in social housing if I could afford not to...Call me snobbish if you want.

Jowo_2

FirstTimeBuyer wrote: »

Yes, I do believe this is going round in circles but have a look on the previous page, with the bulleted criteria for housing - I have answered each of those that we meet.

My responses in bold italics.

Firstly, perhaps due to your obsession with getting into social housing, you've omitted two out of four of the factors for high criteria.

people who are homeless
people who need to move to a particular locality in the district of the authority, where failure to meet that need would cause hardship to themselves or to others

For the discretionary extra points, you will need to verify if your local council actually awards them or not. Some council's give an estimate to their applicants on how many years they can expect to be present on the list before getting housing, according to the current priority band that you are in. Which band are you and your girlfriend in and what has the local council said about your chances of securing housing?

• people living in insanitary, overcrowded or unsatisfactory housing

my girlfriend is currently in overcrowded housing

By the council's definition of overcrowded or by her own? The council will perform an assessment.

• people who need to move on medical or welfare grounds

by such time we will have a child on the way

The council look into current circumstances, not future.


What other factors are taken into account?


Other factors which a points system may take into account could include:

• residency - do you live in the area where you are applying for housing?

yes and have done all my life

• financial circumstances - are you on benefits or in paid employment

paid employment. This is probably to your detriment.

• tenancy record - for example, have you a good record or have you accrued rent arrears?

good record no arrears. You are lodgers at home, not tenants.

• time on register - you may gain extra points if you have been on the housing register for sometime

5 years

FirstTimeBuyer_3-2

Idiophreak wrote: »

You sure about that?

As I was walking down the street with the pram I'd be thinking..."see that man, baby..he helps to subsidise our house (yes he does! yes he does!)...because daddy can't provide for you on his own (no he can't, no he can't!).

I would put my baby to bed and I'm not sure I'd be saying "I know this isn't the nicest area, baby (no it's not! no it's not!)...I know that living in social housing I've exposed you and your mummy to higher rates of burglary, violent crimes and antisocial behaviour (yes I have! yes I have!). I know that you'll probably get lower grades at schoolbecause we live here(yes you will!). It's OK, though....Mummy and I had the wedding of our dreams..wooo!"

Not really having a go, but personally I wouldn't chose to live in social housing if I could afford not to...Call me snobbish if you want.

Thats ludicrous, my girlfriend and I both come from 'council estates', I have an honours degree and she is well on her way to passing hers! I'm not sure theres a single street in my district that is exclusively privately owned for that matter! How in the name of sweet Jesus does living in a council house give you poor school grades? How truly ignorant.

I didn't realise MSE stood for Middle Class Snobbish Elitists.