How can you tell if a house is ex-council?

robby-01

larakane wrote:

This is 2006 you lot - get a grip and find the right property for you rather than being hung up on whether someone less fortunate and unable to afford to buy a house of their own once lived there

The problem is not with who once lived in the house but who lives in the rest of them on the street.
What as the year got to do with it are you saying they use better quality pallets these days or that the cars dont rust quite so quickly.

Dummie_2

larakane wrote:

who cares!!! If you are so narrow minded that it bothers you to live in a house that was once owned by the local authority then be very careful where you move - you might find it hard to get along with your neighbours.

I live in an ex council house and have the loveliest location, lovely neighbours and - guess what - I didn't know it was ex-council and framkly didn't care. This is 2006 you lot - get a grip and find the right property for you rather than being hung up on whether someone less fortunate and unable to afford to buy a house of their own once lived there

I'm sorry if that's the impression you have because of my question. The only reason why I'm being careful is because we live near a council estate now and we have so much trouble. We can't even walk down the road without feeling threatened because of the gangs hanging around. I'm not trying to taint everyone with the same brush and I understand that council/private will have both good/not good people living there. It's just that with our present experience, we do not want to take that risk if we are able to avoid it.

Bargain_Rzl

Dummie, in response to your last post, the place I live in now is not ex-council and in fact it's nowhere near any council houses. I'd describe the demographic as mainly owner-occupiers on modest-ish salaries - pensioners, blue-collar workers and a large number of London cabbies. And yet we have a LOT of antisocial behaviour and vandalism thanks to the local teenagers. Part of the reason why our house is particularly affected is that it's on a corner facing a large traffic island, which acts as a meeting point for all the local yobs. So there's a lot more scope for having problem families/kids hanging around an area, beyond the fact of whether the house is on a council estate or not.

Dummie_2

Does that mean avoid places where teenagers are likely to hang out? For example, local shops, parks, etc. Mind you, having said that, one of my friends live near a park and they have no trouble. I suppose the best thing is to lurk around for a few evenings.

Sisyphus

The burberry wallpaper in the kitchen is usually a give away.
Predominance of pregnant teenagers in the vicinity?

Seriously why do we all assume that Council = Chav.

carrielouise80

Dummie wrote:

OK. So looking on rightmove for properties. Was just wondering how I can tell if properties are ex-council.

Thanks.

hi there,

i'm a part time estate agent, in my experience, ex council houses tend to have larger than average rooms and gardens. But the best way to tell is to call the local council and ask them. Also https://www.upmystreet.com is a very good information website for crime rates/schools and so forth

never_enough

Dummie wrote:

I'm sorry if that's the impression you have because of my question. The only reason why I'm being careful is because we live near a council estate now and we have so much trouble. We can't even walk down the road without feeling threatened because of the gangs hanging around. I'm not trying to taint everyone with the same brush and I understand that council/private will have both good/not good people living there. It's just that with our present experience, we do not want to take that risk if we are able to avoid it.

I recently got into an argument with a family member who was bemoaning the fact that to get planning permission developers often have to include social housing on most new build estates. Poor things, it was putting them off spending £600K on their new 'executive detached residence with double garage' because they might have to rub shoulders with chavs or perverts! Having lived in a variety of places, council owned, exLA & private I would say that you just never can tell. There are revolting people through all sections of society. Owning your own home does not magically make you a nicer person or better class of neighbour. Also with the rise of BTL you have no idea when your lovely neighbour is going to rent their house out to the family from hell.
Ex LA places often have much bigger room sizes & gardens (especially compared to most new builds which often seem tiny) . I know quite a few people who've bought ex-LA, myself included & they're can be excellent value for money & well located. Some estates are predominately privately owned now. In our last flat we always joked that the council residents always had better cars than the owner occupiers. There were a few BMWs, Mercs, a Range Rover & then our old rust bucket! :rotfl: You can usually work out on a council estate how many places have been sold, as new owners often change front doors or windows.
Groups of youths hanging around are a pain & can feel threatening, but they can be found in many areas. My advice would to avoid a house on an estate (of any type) or near an area where kids are likely to congregate because that seems to be what they do.

asandwhen

A vote labour sign in the window :lipsrseal

Bargain_Rzl

never_enough wrote:

In our last flat we always joked that the council residents always had better cars than the owner occupiers. There were a few BMWs, Mercs, a Range Rover & then our old rust bucket! :rotfl:

That's probably because on a "settled" council estate, where most people have been there for years, there aren't actually that many of them who are still on low incomes and therefore it's the ones who have nice cheap council rents who are left with a comparatively high disposable income to spend on stuff like this... :rolleyes:

It does annoy me, I have to say, that cheap housing is available to people who were once classed as "in need", even when they aren't any more, while others are stuck with the higher costs of private renting or purchasing.

I have a friend, an HA tenant rather than council, who used to live with his dad in a 2-bed HA flat in outer London for a low rent. When his dad died, my friend was entitled to take over the tenancy but not to keep the 2-bed flat, so he was moved to a 1-bed place IN CENTRAL LONDON which he pays under £100 a week for - private rents in a similar area are three times that! I find it a bit depressing that because his rent and travel costs are low, he has the freedom to stay in a low-paid job and focus his life on his interests, while almost everybody else I know in London is doing more onerous jobs than they would really prefer to have, just for the salary to support private rental/mortgage within commuting distance of work, plus a reasonable lifestyle.

I don't actually begrudge my friend his good luck (and certainly don't envy him having lost both parents) - I'd only have a problem with him personally if he was really well-off and still taking advantage - but I do find it a little depressing...