Living in council flat & owning house in uk

shabani

I currently live in London in a council flat. At the moment this is valued at just over £250,000. I would obviously like to take adavatage of the right to buy scheme but due to my low earnings I can not get the £250K mortgage.

I was just thinking of buying a house/flat outside London just to let out as I will continue living in my council flat. I hope over time due to buying and selling in the property market, I will eventually be able to afford and buy my council flat.

Thing is, I am not sure if some one can live in a council flat as well as own another house/flat in the uk. Is this legal? Does anybody have any experience of doing this.

A_Nice_Englishman

My ex and I did exactly this but she had to live in the council flat as a condition of her employment so it was an unusual situation.

There may be something in your Tenancy Agreement. If there isn't I don't see how they could stop you, even if they found out.

Whether buy-to-let is a good investment at the moment is an entirely different question. Personally, I am getting out of that market.

WiseInvestor_2

Quite frankly I'm shocked you're even asking the question!

The rest of us are paying for you to live in a quarter-of-a-million pound London flat, whilst you're planning to make money on your own property elsewhere!

It's no wonder this country is falling apart!

steve_cov

I believe it is a condition of your local authority tenancy that you do not own or rent any other residential property. And rightly so.

Local authority housing is there as a safety net for those who would otherwise have nowhere to live. It is not provided because you fancy making a quick buck.

belleooo

WiseInvestor wrote:

The rest of us are paying for you to live in a quarter-of-a-million pound London flat

And how do you come to this conclusion? I am genuingly puzzled.

MortgageMamma

Because local authority housing is funded through tax payers money. Low cost housing is subsidised by the council and don';t forget the cost of your repairs have to be factored in. If you could rent somewhere else for the same cost as a council property, with no deposit would you still be there?

In saying that, I'm not judging you, its only natural that people want to maximise their finances and make money in whichever way possible, but I don't think that this is the right way to do it. Have you considered approaching a housing association regarding shared ownership?

shabani

I thought the idea of the right to buy was to enable people to acquire ownershop of their own flats. But surely, how can you afford to buy if for £250K!

The honest truth is that the rich are now offering those who can not afford to buy their flats huge financial incentives to become joint tenants for a year or so, and then move out leaving one tenant who will become the main tenant and after a few years will have the right to buy.
Though this is illegal, the sad truth is that this is happening all the time.

So I do not see any problem, with me owning a flat some where in the UK and living in my coucil flat.This is just the same as someone owning a flat abroad yet living in a council flat.

MortgageMamma

Its more of a moral issue, as council property is there to help people in need. Its wrong to live in state subsidised accomodation whilst owning another property in the UK or abroad. Its also against most local authority rules. You really should think twice before you do something like that. There are alternative ways for you to invest in property without abusing the authorities provisions.

Also, Your property may be valued at £250k but this does not necessarily mean that that is the amount you would have to pay for it. Is that the councils valuation or an independent one? how long have you lived there, what discount would you be entitled to?

shabani

I will only be able to get £16K max discount on the property. Obviously on £250K , though this helps this is no big discount.

Seems the only way out for me is to move out of London, and then I can afford to buy my own place.
From the views here it seems one can not buy a property abroad as well as living in a council flat.

shabani

Someone told me that you can get up to £50,000 in London for leaving your coucil flat. The £50K you get is towards deposit for your new house.

I have looked at the council website but can not find anything. Is this true ?

MortgageMamma

I know this may sound strange coming from a professional, but, really there is more to life than owning a property. If you want an investment why not simply invest your money and save a good deposit and buy at a more convenient time?

If you are looking for a home then you have got one where you live now. Owning or not owning a property does not make you a better or worse person, or viewed any differently by the majority of people. In fact, its never truly yours until you have paid off your mortgage.

I feel that nobody should sucumb to the pressure of the UK culture and obsession of home ownership if they cannot afford it comfortably - if you rented for a few more years your RTB discount will increase and you could be in a situation where buying becomes viable