Council house debate

Morglin

katygeorge wrote: »

i have recently had this rant with my mum, i am one of a group of 7 friends, all aged 25 now and i am th eonly one who has even had a job and doesnt have kids. i have had a very rough 6 month sof both me and my pertner losing our jobs and now our home is being repossesed. coucil wont help till i am homeless and even then they said they would put us in the local ymca till they can find me somewhere (this could take up to a year they said). my freinds often phone asking if i want to go clubbing and then moan when i say i cant ive no money, i finally snapped last month when they asked why and i told them its because im working to dam hard to pay for your home and for you to go clubbing every week. rewarded for never working and getting knocked up at 16

To be honest, if you and your partner are childless, working age and healthy, and therefore have no 'priority' needs, I'm surprised the council are helping you at all, even with a temp hostel.

Most councils wouldn't have anything to offer someone in your position.

It's not a case of your mates getting 'rewarded', or of the council being able to make moral judgements on who deserves what - they had priority needs that gave them the points to be alloocated accommodation.

It might have been their actions that generated those needs, but as I assume that are losing your home because you haven't paid your rent/mortgage, then I can't see the difference with them demanding council help because of the results of their mistakes, and you demanding council help because the results of your mistakes.

Lin

FOURCANDLES_2

katygeorge wrote: »

i have recently had this rant with my mum, i am one of a group of 7 friends, all aged 25 now and i am th eonly one who has even had a job and doesnt have kids. i have had a very rough 6 month sof both me and my pertner losing our jobs and now our home is being repossesed. coucil wont help till i am homeless and even then they said they would put us in the local ymca till they can find me somewhere (this could take up to a year they said). my freinds often phone asking if i want to go clubbing and then moan when i say i cant ive no money, i finally snapped last month when they asked why and i told them its because im working to dam hard to pay for your home and for you to go clubbing every week. rewarded for never working and getting knocked up at 16

So you chose friends who came from a section of society you disprove of? if you are paying for there home I assume they are unemployed and have been since being knocked up at 16?All I suggest is you choose your friends more wisely.
However were when you were jobless and now in the process of having your home taken off you" described as a bone idle lay about , a bad debtor who cant pay there debts and as such hard working tax payers like me will end up paying for you?? you waste of space???.
I doubt very much that is you but you will by many who work etc be dumped in that big bowl of assumptions.Not nice is it?

michelle1506

Well I am sorry for your troubles even it others on here are not. I am a public sector worker, and given these massive cuts under this 'government' I don't know how much longer I am going to have a job for. It does sound as though the council are going to give you some help, unfortunately, the council won't help - until someone is made homeless.

I know you say that you and your partner lost your jobs. Have you looked at the 'up your income' thread on here?? You might find some work that you can do, which might enable you keep hold of your property.

katygeorge wrote: »

i have recently had this rant with my mum, i am one of a group of 7 friends, all aged 25 now and i am th eonly one who has even had a job and doesnt have kids. i have had a very rough 6 month sof both me and my pertner losing our jobs and now our home is being repossesed. coucil wont help till i am homeless and even then they said they would put us in the local ymca till they can find me somewhere (this could take up to a year they said). my freinds often phone asking if i want to go clubbing and then moan when i say i cant ive no money, i finally snapped last month when they asked why and i told them its because im working to dam hard to pay for your home and for you to go clubbing every week. rewarded for never working and getting knocked up at 16

19lottie82

katygeorge, don't listen to these people, keep your head held high, you deserve to! Like you, it annoys me that hard working tax payers get sweet FA and bone idle baby machines get everything! Where is the justice in that?

Tippytoes

squinty wrote: »

Ok - I have looked a the source of the information -these include - ONS (the office of National Statistics), the Home Office, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (one of the most respected research foundations in the country) CIH (The Chartered Institute of Housing), CORE (The Housing Industry Continuous Recording System, which was at that time run by St Andrews University) and the CLG (The Department of Communities and Local Government) - all excellent sources of good quality data and information.

However, as none of this fits your point of view you choose to dismiss this and produce not one piece of evidence to back your claim that " I am absolutely telling the truth when I say that immigrants (irrespective of working status, sponging status, babies, overcrowding blah blah blah) have priority when it comes to social housing. I know what I'm talking about"

Are you aware of the theory of reinforcment theory? - this is when people only take note of information that suits their existing beliefs and ignore facts. I suggest you read the shelter report and the information that WWH posted earlier and start to question what you hold true. Or at least point others in the direction of reliable statistics that prove your point.

"Lies, damn lies and statistics" - google it

VJ_

Tippytoes wrote: »

"Lies, damn lies and statistics"

Also known as 'evidence'

michelle1506

I don't like to say too much on this topic in PC times such as the ones we live in, but I have also heard this, and I didn't read it in a paper either!

To be honest, in London, overcrowding, baby on way etc doesn't give you a great deal, unless there is another ingredient.

squinty wrote: »

Ok - I have looked a the source of the information -these include - ONS (the office of National Statistics), the Home Office, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (one of the most respected research foundations in the country) CIH (The Chartered Institute of Housing), CORE (The Housing Industry Continuous Recording System, which was at that time run by St Andrews University) and the CLG (The Department of Communities and Local Government) - all excellent sources of good quality data and information.

However, as none of this fits your point of view you choose to dismiss this and produce not one piece of evidence to back your claim that " I am absolutely telling the truth when I say that immigrants (irrespective of working status, sponging status, babies, overcrowding blah blah blah) have priority when it comes to social housing. I know what I'm talking about"

Are you aware of the theory of reinforcment theory? - this is when people only take note of information that suits their existing beliefs and ignore facts. I suggest you read the shelter report and the information that WWH posted earlier and start to question what you hold true. Or at least point others in the direction of reliable statistics that prove your point.

katygeorge

ok i just want to clear something up i was simply giving my thoughts of the situation of how the benefit system and housing system work. As for my friends we have been friends since we were about 5 so they life choices were not a concern at the time. I was complianing about how i have always worked, and fended for my self believing that as i pay tax and ni i would if ever needed be able to get some help, when me and my husband fell on bad times in september i was shocked to find there was no help for us, we seamed to fall between all the cracks of the system so got £110 a week to live on, ect ect this then caused teh problems that are now facing repossesion. yes we are now working but jobs that are lower paid than our last so now way we could keep our home and trying to fiind somewhere decent to live is feeling impossible. ive always believed the systems of housing and benefits were there to help people in need but it seams not i understand certain groups eg parents, disabled ect need things more i was still shocked that there was no help for normal people that had fallen on bad times. I was basically having a rant, about how the system works and the people who abuse it and use it as way to get an easy life.

kd85

I do believe something needs to change. Me and my dh have worked all our lives ok on a low wage but always paid everything and we were renting in London for £900 a month. Last year i was had to leave my job due to it being closed down. Due to my partner being under 25 we werent entitled to any help. We were struggling to pay our way then our landlord sold up from underneath us and ran off to Africa (Matter is still being dealt with by police) so we lots any money we had left. Our in-laws wouldnt see us on the street so took us in although it meant moving half way across the country so my Dh had to give up his job. We are very thankful but we have no room. They do have a council has due to his mothers illness but its only a 2bedroom and theres 7 of us living here including her other children who are both teenagers so shouldnt share a room. My dh has been lucky and found a job straight away althou its low pay and he only does 25hours a wek its a job. Due to him still being under 25 we can not claim help and as he earns more (JUst) then £105 a week which is all you need to earn to not be entitled to help as you should be able to live on that!!! I now can not work due to health problems and being pregnant but after almost dying last year and losing 4babies when it happened ok timing was bad but noway I was giving it up. We are know on the housing list but been told it could take up to 5 years!! Do not understand how they expect 7people and a baby to live in a 2 bedroom house for that long!! Its not that we expect it but I feel I have worked hard all my life and never asked for help yet know when I need it I cant get any. It just bugs me because where i am know you just see all the young girls out with there prams getting drunk and shopping as they get everything they want. Also we have some new homes up the road from us and everyone of them has a lovely car and they are always going away. I have started doing Avon to try get some money as not entitled to any maternity pay and was at one of the homes last week and was taking to a lovely woman who was telling me how they had just come to the country and was offered that home and another but they liked this area!! Dont get me wrong im not saying thats right or wrong but I do think they should look at the people who really need it. Every 2 weeks I go and bid on the propertys and watch the people around me as i say young mums after what they can get or new people to the country and after they have bidded I end up right down the bottom of the que!! I know there are people in similar situations as me and they are the ones who need help. Whoever suggest it should get reviewed every few years was right as I know lots of people who did get them when need but know they kids have grown up, moved out etc or they are in good jobs and have large houses to themself So should then be giving to people who need them. The advice the council gave me was to rent privately as no one is likely to get a property now. Well ok tell me how when we are sort of homeless, have a baby on the way and only have my dhs wage to survive on which is no more then then £700 a month and we have to survive and pay all our bills on that!! Sorry for the rant but it makes me so mad at times!

propertyman

Well it does need to change, but no one is prepared to do what is required.

Strong borders for one, and a modern workhouse for the illegals awaiting asylum or the intentionally stateless.

And for the baby momma's and single we need a modern hostel system, not a "council flat" and senseless bullying by a the job centre/dwp. Move into a hostel, keep/seek a job as day care is on the ground floor... that is what we can afford.

Council/social housing is a major issue as the cost of buying renting is a problem. Once it was for low income (older) people and families. If we kick the large companies out of the southeast and make it attractive to go elsewhere we employ local unemployed people and then build houses. If you keep the supply open the land is cheaper and therefore housing rents and prices are correspondingly lower. With land often being 40-60% of the final value, how would it be if you half the cost of new rents and sale prices?

But then the locals would be up in arms, and who would vote for you if you intro diced this sensible policy?