Considering giving up council house and renting privately- am i mad?

jellyhead

I know somebody who did a mutual exchange with a friend of her nuisance neighbours. The house she moved to was in a dreadful state but it was worth it to get away from those neighbours.

If you talk to your neighbours at all can you ask if they know anyone in the area who might exchange? But say it would have to be local for the schools. Say that your child with special needs can't cope with the noise ... in a polite way that doesn't make it clear that you think they're awful people

sistafromanothermista

Personally if you have the means to, i would go for it. A better life for your kids has to be put first imo.

dseventy

If you decide to it, make sure you everything in place for the private let.

I am a LL (18 properties) and I won't let anyone rent a property from if they rely on others to pay the rent (ie the government) and can't pay it themselves.

Theres too many variables for me. From eligibilty criteria through to government policy change, to the fact that the rent is paid direct to the tenant and not the LL (like the old HB).

Good luck.

D70

bestpud

Yes I think you'd be mad to give up a secure tenancy, especially as you want to avoid moving around! Many private tenants want social housing because they are fed up with having to move!

Also, who is to say you won't get dodgy neighbours in a private rent?

You've moved 3 times already and I think you will keep moving as there is no such thing as a perfect house. A private tenancy won't change that.

skintchick

WantToBeSE wrote: »

i COULD afford it, only just, but i could. It would mean that i would have to keep to a very tight budget, but i feel that is a sacrifice i would happily make.

I think that if you can afford to rent privately, even if money will be tight, you have a moral duty to do so in order that more needy people can be housed.

Errata

Before you think about moving into a private rental, with the chance of having to move every six months, do exhaust every avenue that will deal with the drug dealers, HA, Police, local councillor etc

Oliver14

WantToBeSE wrote: »

am i insane for even considering giving up a council house (as some of my friends have suggested)?

Giving up a secure tenancy you have for life with reasonable rent for overpriced insecure housing in the Private sector. I wouldn't call yo mad but I would suggest it may not be the wisest move as once you give up the tenacy I doubt very much you will get another one. You have discovered one of the problems with mutual exchange a lot of people are just trying to get out of areas they don't like. If there is a lot of anti social behaviour in your area I suggest you report it.

Find out if there is a transfer list so that maybe a chance of transferring locally or even look again at mutual exchange. I would be very cautious before giving up such a secure tenancy for your children and yourself, having insecure housing could do more harm than living in a slightly undesirable area.

raven83

skintchick wrote: »

I think that if you can afford to rent privately, even if money will be tight, you have a moral duty to do so in order that more needy people can be housed.

What even if that means moving every 6 months? Or the rent being inflated so much that they could end up homeles? I think she should only do it at a very last resort.

Ames

Yes I think you're mad, but I also totally understand where you're coming from. I'm in a council flat which doesn't meet my needs and I no longer feel safe here. I'm hoping I'll be able to buy a house with an inheritance, but if not I'll have to find another way of moving.

Have you spoken to the council about moving? I'll probably get flamed for this, but as your son has special needs you might be able to get help from places that help disabled people, as you'll need someone in your corner. I'm not sure if your council will have someone to deal with issues for vulnerable people? If your son is about to hit his teens and has special needs, then he could be led astray by your neighbours, so I'd use this angle to try and get moved.

I really think you need to exhaust every avenue before giving up a council property, because the problems of privately renting would probably cause the same amount of stress and upset as staying where you are.

Errata

It's worth pointing out that neighbours in private rentals can be considerably worse than HA ones as they tend to be fairly transient and LLs aren't too bothered what they get up to as long as the rent is paid.