New House Misery

evoke

SingleSue wrote: »

No, they will just nick your milk from your doorstep, steal the newspapers from your letter box and nick tools from your garden shed to do so.....(the drug addicted middle class that is - which obviously, is not all of them!)

As happened to us in our very middle class owner occupied housing development.

You just cannot class people by the house they live in, there are good and bad in every walk of life, be that upper class or lower class.

Sorry, with respect, you need to take your rose-tinted spectacles off. Real life is simply not the utopia that Blairite conditioning would have you believe.

I am scared to even drive through a chavvy area (usually an estate) yet can leave my car unlocked in the nicer parts of Bucks or Cheshire. Those are the facts in the real world.

I know it's not politically correct to say that but i'd be lying if I didn't. And therein lies the problem when we're too scared to call a spade a spade. It ruins society.

Social engineering simply does not work. I have found out the hard way after spending a decade in a socially engineered utopian development with affordable housing on it. I'm moving because I can't live with the people that I want to get away from. I was one of them years ago but I bettered my life to not be one of them and to not be near them. That's my right, however unpalatable the liberal-left deem that to be.

zaksmum

I own my house, live in a residential street, not on an estate. We've lived here a long time and I love my house.

Problem is, as elderly people in the road died, their houses were bought by Housing Associations.

The house opposite used to be home to a lovely lady and her family but she moved into sheltered accommodation five years ago.

Since then we've had nothing but trouble from that house. Bad tenant after bad tenant, drug dealers, addicts, theives, muggers, stabbings...police there most days. Vicious staffies roaming loose, gangs of hoodies hanging round, spitting, swearing, boozing.

The latest crowd consist of a single 40 year old mother with 5 sons and various men and a foul mouthed girlfriend of one of them, who had her kids taken off her due to her cocaine addiction.

Fights all the time, the lads threatening other lads with machetes...all I want to do now is move but I'll have to sell for a pittance. I'm more than ready to accept that if anyone will buy, but I'm not optimistic.

But if I do get out, I'll make very sure there are no Housing Association properties nearby.

darkpool

The best thing you could do with all those chav estates is get the decent people out then build a big wall around the estate so the chavs don't get out.

Just throw some pot noodles over the wall every few weeks and they'll be happy enough.

SingleSue

evoke wrote: »

Sorry, with respect, you need to take your rose-tinted spectacles off. Real life is simply not the utopia that Blairite conditioning would have you believe.

I am scared to even drive through a chavvy area (usually an estate) yet can leave my car unlocked in the nicer parts of Bucks or Cheshire. Those are the facts in the real world.

I know it's not politically correct to say that but i'd be lying if I didn't. And therein lies the problem when we're too scared to call a spade a spade. It ruins society.

Social engineering simply does not work. I have found out the hard way after spending a decade in a socially engineered utopian development with affordable housing on it. I'm moving because I can't live with the people that I want to get away from. I was one of them years ago but I bettered my life to not be one of them and to not be near them. That's my right, however unpalatable the liberal-left deem that to be.

Sorry, just spat tea out at you calling me a Blairite! I am free thinking and have never and will never be a Labour supporter.

I AM talking from experience, not from rose tinted spectacles....I have lived in an owner occupied home (well two actually), I currently live in social housing.

We live in what was old council housing stock which has been transferred over to Housing association. We have a good mix of private dwellings and HA (family housing and elderly bungalows). We all (HA residents included), look after our homes, our gardens, our neighbours. We have very very little crime, there are no gangs, no vandalism, no violence, everyone is polite and everyone helps the other out.

In short, our mixed bag of properties is working and has been for the last 60 years or so.

I know this is not the case everywhere but it has been my experience in two different areas...my only bad experience with neighbours was in our completely privately owned housing development but again, I know we were just unlucky to get the owner occupier neighbours from hell.

Maybe it is because we are a rural ish area rather than urban, maybe because we are predominantly middle class in our upbringings, maybe it is because the owner occupiers don't treat us as pieces of poo and we HA residents don't treat the owner occupiers as stuck up, but it can work....we co-exist happily.

And it is nothing to do with Blair (spits to the side in disgust at that name :rotfl:)

ILW

I believe that a large part of the problem is that now you generally have to have "issues" to be offered social housing. You do actually get moved up the list if you have a drink or drug problem. Whereas if you are working you go down the list. This has tended to mean that the problem families are the only ones that now get the HA places and the estates just slowly turn into ghettos.

BitterAndTwisted

Not everywhere is the same and not all people are the same. I live on a council estate in one of the most "diverse" and economically-deprived boroughs in London and have done for thirty years. There are no tribes of badly-behaved "yoof" hanging around and frightening anyone. No fridges in front gardens, no fly-tipping and no noisy parties at the weekends. People actually say "hello" to each other on the street. I'm very happy here and I have no reason to believe that my experience is unique or unusual.

Morglin

How outrageous that anyone buying a house on tick should be expected to live near people who rent their homes........:eek::eek:

Shocking.:eek:

Makes me wonder how it works where I live - a mixture of renters and owners all living happily with no problems.

Lin :whistle:

zoesmummy_2006

Im a single mum thru no choice of my own (ex left me for another woman, then left her for someone else). Im claiming benefits as a single parent, my parents helped me and the kids get into a private rent in my hometown, the house is on a street that is mainly older people. We have been in this house just over a year and have never had an issue with anyone. The neighbours on my right buy my kids birthday and xmas presents, they invited my daughter round to do baking when they had their grand daughter there, and on the left they have offered to give me a lift when i take my daughter to school in a morning in the bad weather. My dad sorted the back garden as it was a pile of rubble when we moved in, its now a lovely garden, and neighbours both side said how lovely it was to hear the kids playing out back. They are both polite and respectful towards everyone, and i will ensure they continue that way as they grow up. Unfortunately the house we rent is going to be put on the market soon, and both sets of neighbours have said how gutted they are that we are going to be leaving as they would love us to stay. So would i as i love this house, its become our home and my kids are settled. Not all benefit claimants are drug taking foul mouthed drinkers who cause problems every night and make life a living hell. I hardly drink, have never smoked and am no good with confrontation-ask my ex lol xx

carefullycautious

More properties in suburban areas up for rent = Potential Problem tenants

It is happening more and more lines are becoming blurred

Soon everyone will be complaining except for those fortunate to live in a detached house in the middle of no where. But then you become a target for the criminal fraternity.

There will always be people who make up their own rules in society
Tarring every person with the same brush who happen to rent is not going to make this problem disappear.

From a LA renter who lives amongst a mixed bag of people in a street on the edge of a housing estate and guess who causes problems in the street, yes youve guessed it the Owner Occupier.

Just seen Zoesmummys post above how refreshing that a set of neighbours have not made assumptions and have embraced this young family and made them feel welcome.

MrsE_2

ILW wrote: »

I believe that a large part of the problem is that now you generally have to have "issues" to be offered social housing. You do actually get moved up the list if you have a drink or drug problem. Whereas if you are working you go down the list. This has tended to mean that the problem families are the only ones that now get the HA places and the estates just slowly turn into ghettos.

I think you have hit the nail on the head there.

My DD is expecting (a happy surprise) & they were saving to buy their first home in a little while.

There is no question of them being eligible for a council home so they have had to rush forward their plans & buy sooner with less of a deposit than they planned.

Normal people/couples/families just won't get council housing now.