Panorama: The Great Housing Rip Off (Mon 25th)

Brallaqueen

dunstonh wrote: »

Still cant get over his election night cowboy rubbish years ago. I cannot view him as a serious journalist. Luckily, I only see him for a few seconds before Spooks starts

You mean this?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y7JX8D1Kb88

OH MY GOD you can see him regrettting it even before he swaggers through the saloon doors.

red_devil

fancy having to fill the bath with saucepans of hot water everytime you want a bath. You shouldnt have to live like that bet he dosent.

Guitar

I'm watching it now. I didn't actually realise this starts off in my local area (Newcastle).

The first lads house was very bad but a lot of what I've seen is fairly common here. I've rented a few places without hot water or heating, crumbing walls, damp, exposed wiring. I'm a little suprised at peoples reactions because I've just come to expect this. I've never received benefits, this is just what I can afford.

What's interesting is the amounts these people were paying, the newcastle lad was £400 a month, the young mackum mother was paying £485? For this area this is actually above what a decent place would go for. But I guess because they're on housing benefit they can't rent the decent properties and the slumlords get to name their price from the taxpayer.

It's amazing that someone a few miles away could get more in housing benefit than I can afford in rent but they live in conditions like that.

Loughton_Monkey

Guitar wrote: »

I'm watching it now. I didn't actually realise this starts off in my local area (Newcastle).

I think I read somewhere, fairly recently, the the Government has reverted to paying Housing Benefit direct to the 'client' rather than pay it direct to the landlord? If this is the case, I would much rather have £400 to spend on something other than rent, than £300!

Go to Tower Hamlets. Many of them live in £1,600 - £1,800 per month apartments (although it could be that they are illegals. As you probably know, illegals get far more in benefits than others).

olly300

Loughton_Monkey wrote: »

I think I read somewhere, fairly recently, the the Government has reverted to paying Housing Benefit direct to the 'client' rather than pay it direct to the landlord? If this is the case, I would much rather have £400 to spend on something other than rent, than £300!

Go to Tower Hamlets. Many of them live in £1,600 - £1,800 per month apartments (although it could be that they are illegals. As you probably know, illegals get far more in benefits than others).

You Sir talk rubbish.

Asylum seekers get less benefits then anyone else.

Plus the government has ended the scheme where the recipient gets the difference between the rent and the calculated rent for the area so they only get the rent that the landlord puts in his/her contract.

olly300

Guitar wrote: »

I'm watching it now. I didn't actually realise this starts off in my local area (Newcastle).

The first lads house was very bad but a lot of what I've seen is fairly common here. I've rented a few places without hot water or heating, crumbing walls, damp, exposed wiring. I'm a little suprised at peoples reactions because I've just come to expect this. I've never received benefits, this is just what I can afford.

I've lived in cheap accommodation but I had hot water, heating, no crumbling walls and no exposed wiring.

The walls had a damp problem but this was chased to the neighbour's house and the landlord involved was trying to deal with an overseas landlord. He got to the point that he just demanded permission to go into their garden to fix the guttering gap on their side that was causing the problem for free as it was damaging his property.

The LLs in question rented out cheaply because they knew they would have no void periods. So even at odd times of year like December they could find a tenant to move in

Guitar wrote: »

What's interesting is the amounts these people were paying, the newcastle lad was £400 a month, the young mackum mother was paying £485? For this area this is actually above what a decent place would go for. But I guess because they're on housing benefit they can't rent the decent properties and the slumlords get to name their price from the taxpayer.

That's the major issue with housing benefit which is why the government has introduced the caps. Some LL were taking the p*ss with the amount they were charging people as it was no reflection on the quality of the property.

Granted around me where I live in London there are luxury properties but the ones I know off are targeted at people who are placed on secondment aboard and they won't touch benefits tenants. On the other hand there are scrummy properties which if they aren't ex-LA are targeted only at students.

Loughton_Monkey

olly300 wrote: »

You Sir talk rubbish.

Asylum seekers get less benefits then anyone else.

Sadly I deleted it, but a while ago I did get an authoritative reference to more generous benefits being paid - including something about being entitled to separate 'full' housing allowance even though living couped up together.