Will I lose my council property?

nottslass_2

oldestrocker wrote: »

Well maybe they are on benefits and as you well know, there are not that many private landlords that would consider them as tenants.
Plus the LHA invariably does not cover the full rent so they have to use their benefit to make up the difference.

Turn it another way, who should have social housing - a family with a household income of £50,000 or someone on Income Support?

And yes families are in B&B for months in some cases - years because they would be homeless otherwise.

I have no idea where you live, but we have here in Kent a town called Margate that has a great number of private hotels that used to be for holiday makers. They are now used as B&B accommodation.
They come from the South East and East London.
The sheer scale of numbers of families involved is staggering.

So why should someone who is (possibly) a benefit scrounger be given the apparent privilege of social housing over someone who is working ?

Forcing people to move when their circumstances change will do little more than create sink estates and ghettos where living off benefits is seen as a way of life,in turn the local economy will suffer,resources will be stretched and the local schools will soon be deemed "as failing".

Unfortunately in areas of high employment there are already areas like this - would it really be in anyone's best interests to turn every area that has high levels of social housing into such "ghettos"?

Tenants who have a higher disposable income will invariably "invest" in making their house a home and will save the Goverment ££££££'s by improving and maintaining it.

I'm not entirely sure how the powers that be will be able to "police" a financial change in circumstances anyway - What if for example a single tenant has a lodger or partner move in will they be able to use their income in the assessment even if they aren't named on the tenancy agreement ?

[Deleted User]

AsknAnswer2 wrote: »

Living in Scotland this will also not affect you. The change is to be implemented in England

even in England it will not apply to existing tenants only new ones as and when the rules change

AsknAnswer2

I didn't see a need to post that, seeing as you had already posted it before I posted. It would be utterly pointless for me to repeat it.

nannytone_2

oldest rocker...many council properties are in a far worse condition than private lets.
a council property is 'allocated' and the ability t choose which property to take isn't there.

social housing isnt competing with privat lets, so they arent 'done up' between tenants.

when i had a council property, the previous tenants had lived there for 50+ years, and it hadn't had even a lick of paint for at least the last 20! all that was in the kitchen was a butler sink on metal legs and a small stone larder.
the bathroom had no hand basin, there were no skirting boards, the garden was a jungle.....i could go on and on. verty few people would rent from a private landlord if the property was in that condition.
but i took it as i had already lived in a tenth floor flat with 2 children for almost 11 years. but, i knew that over time i would be able to make the house 'my own'. if i'd been offered aq 2 year tenancy, i very much doubt that anyone would have taken it!

Wee_Willy_Harris

nannytone wrote: »

oldest rocker...many council properties are in a far worse condition than private lets.
a council property is 'allocated' and the ability t choose which property to take isn't there.

social housing isnt competing with privat lets, so they arent 'done up' between tenants.

when i had a council property, the previous tenants had lived there for 50+ years, and it hadn't had even a lick of paint for at least the last 20! all that was in the kitchen was a butler sink on metal legs and a small stone larder.
the bathroom had no hand basin, there were no skirting boards, the garden was a jungle.....i could go on and on. verty few people would rent from a private landlord if the property was in that condition.
but i took it as i had already lived in a tenth floor flat with 2 children for almost 11 years. but, i knew that over time i would be able to make the house 'my own'. if i'd been offered aq 2 year tenancy, i very much doubt that anyone would have taken it!

Most social housing providers (including councils) use Choice Based Lettings (CBL) to allocate properties. Under CBL, the prospective tenant has the absolute choice of property. The last government also tightened up the standards at which social housing is let, which has gone a long way to prevent a repeat of your experiences.

nannytone_2

that wasnt the point i was trying to make, although when i got my council property, there was no bidding system. you got 2 offers and if you refused both you'd go back to the bottom of the list.
i took the house because it was in a decent area, and who knew......the second offer could have been worse!!

my point was..........that if tenancies are for 2 year periods........what point would there be in fitting cupboards in the kitchen, or replacing skirting boards or even paying out for carpets?
at least in a private let, this is done prior to being let.

Wee_Willy_Harris

nannytone wrote: »

that wasnt the point i was trying to make, although when i got my council property, there was no bidding system. you got 2 offers and if you refused both you'd go back to the bottom of the list.
i took the house because it was in a decent area, and who knew......the second offer could have been worse!!

my point was..........that if tenancies are for 2 year periods........what point would there be in fitting cupboards in the kitchen, or replacing skirting boards or even paying out for carpets?
at least in a private let, this is done prior to being let.

Which my second point answered.

nannytone_2

youre kidding!
my daughter was offered a council property last year, and it wasn't filt for pigs let alone humans!

Wee_Willy_Harris

nannytone wrote: »

youre kidding!
my daughter was offered a council property last year, and it wasn't filt for pigs let alone humans!

And I am sure I could find a private place the same.... But we are talking about the bigger picture. The decent homes standard has made such a thing far less likely in the social housing sector.

Prinzessilein

A few years ago I lived in a disgusting private let - you wouldn't have kept a dog in it (if you tried the RSPCA would've been on you!)...no inside loo, no hot water, no cooker, and so damp - not to mention the mice (or was it rats...I never liked to look too closely!)

A few months ago I was offered a place in social housing. I was told I couldn't view it immediately, they were doing repairs/decorations. It was freshly painted when I finally got to see it, and new cupboards in the kirchen. Plus my disabilities mean they are making a few adaptions for me - like swapping the bathroom for a wetroom/shower room.

I'm really hoping the new regulations won't force me out!