Homelessness & Croydon Council

Dunroamin

PippaGirl wrote: »

Yes I agree with starframe. I've gone over my tenancy waiting for the council to help me and they did find me something and I moved a few weeks later. It is stressful not knowing where you will be put as you have no choice at all but the homeless team do their very best to meet your needs and do all they can. Previously I'd been on the homeless list and then out of fear of the unknown found another private tenancy myself but less than a year later was asked to leave as the owners unexpectedly needed to return to live there so the second time I knew I needed more security than moving every few months so decided to wait it out stressful though it is. Hang in there.

It does seem a shame that those living on benefits by choice (not aimed at you) should feel that they have the right to a secure tenancy whilst those that pay their own way have to put up with the possibility of moving every 6/12 months in the private sector.

Funny old world we live in.

PippaGirl_2

Homeless people don't get a secure tenancy, or at least they don't here! Usually homeless people are placed into a property owned by someone who has agreed to rent it to the council for X amount of years. The council then rent it to the homeless person using the same sort of tenancy as they would get using a rental agency. All these properties are rented at LHA or less.

The advantage to the homeless person is you don't need to pay deposits in advance which can be difficult to afford, and the council maintain the properties for the duration of the rental so you know that should the heating cease to work it will be fixed quickly and not in 6-8 weeks in the depths of winter as had happened to me in the past. Also as owners sign up for a minimum period, you know you have a period of stability of at least 2 years or whatever instead of being moved on every six months when you don't have the health, physical ability or money to cope with that.

That's what they do here anyway. I know that most councils if not all now do not provide social housing to homeless people, this is to discourage/prevent people manipulating systems and jumpting queues.

PippaGirl_2

and personally I don't know anyone living on benefits by choice.

heartbreak_star

Glad you've managed to get something sorted with your creditors - don't let them push you into paying any more though! Really, pop over to DFW - even if you have something in place they're a lovely bunch on there and might be able to advise ways of squeezing your money more.

Terry reiterated my point - even paying the arrears might not be enough, you're going to have to play ball with whatever the council says as you are dependent on them.

I do wish you luck, it's not a nice situation.

HBS x

BigAunty

To the OP, contact Shelter asap for a double-check on yr rights. the local council ombudsman have advised councils not to insist that tenants must stay put until the landlord has got a court order if there is a realistic prospect that it will be granted - double-check this on the housing forum or with shelter.

That said, no council can dish out social housing to every tenant who gets notice by their landlord.

I've only skimmed this thread so apologies if already covered - are you receiving child support from the father?

Also, what did the council say about yr arrears? they don't have to help if u could have but did not pay ( tho it sounds like it's not an issue in yr case).

My understanding is that croydon council deals with hundreds of homelessness cases each year, has hardly any supply of social housing versus thousands on the list.

londonbabe73

To the op ,

Ignorance is no defence , surely you knew how much your monthly rent was?? To say you thought it was paid in full is the very reason why direct payments and uv are being brought in.

you need to remain in property until the bailiff evicts you and then present yourself as homeless to the council on the day of the eviction and they will find you interim accommodation ( hostel /b&b ) until they can find you a private rent property or put you into their temp
accommodation . But when you get the eviction notice give the homeless dept a copy so they know your coming on the day.


Arrange for your belongings to go into storage ( some councils may find you a garage if you ask ) .
Then unfortunately it's luck as to what is available on the day eviction as to where
you get put a lot of councils can't afford b&bs in their own boroughs due to inner London councils block booking hotel rooms .
But be under no illusion if they accept a duty to help you accept their help and be grateful your not out on your ear and made intentionally homeless after 5
years working in temp accommodation it amazes me how many people who claim they have no where to go make demands as to where they will and won't go yes it prob won't be down the road from your kids school yes you will prob all be in 1 room and you may have to share kitchen / bathroom with other families but if
you expect the council to house you unfortunately have to take what your given as the councils are very hard pushed now as they have shrinking budgets so are being more strict with who they will Accept a duty to house

Also why is your 18 not working ? You can go to college and work maybe even postpone college for a year and help out the family , times are changing it's time for people to have self responsibility which includes knowing how much your rent
is asking for statements etc . It can seem a bit overwhelming but at least your going to have a roof over your head.
Ps there was a ruling that families could only be in b&b for 6 weeks am guessing
that might have changed in the current climate but worth enquiring when they sign you in.

terryw

starframe18 wrote: »

. Debt free wannabe wasn't any good for me, there advise was not to save for birthdays and christmas lol. how would I tell my kids. It wouldn't have paid my £150 a month shortfall.

This comment about the wannabe board is unfair. Here is a link to your SOA:
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/54127505#Comment_54127505

Regarding your expenditure on Presents this was the actual advice given:

"£30/month on gifts is also quite a lot for someone at the edge of their budget - it probably doesn't feel like it spreads very far but as you are creeping over your income already on the basics it's something you can and should reduce. Perhaps use any extra income you can get (surveys etc.) to fund most gifts, and arrange with friends/family not to do gifts or get them something token. Any good friend will understand and not want you to get into debt for a gift that will probably be forgotten about in a couple of months! "

which is very different to your comment above.

There were also some very sensible suggestions about the rest of your SOA.

Barbara,

If you are still reading this thread, please have a look at the wannabe board. Regardless of starframe's comment, it is likely that you will get good advice and suggestions there.

BarbaraJ5

krisskross wrote: »

That is a huge amount of money. Add in about £800 a month for housing costs and you are being given the equivalent of a £35K a year salary.

Will you be able to earn that much?

I didn't realise we were so poor, living on far far less than that.

No i wouldn't. I haven't worked for over 7 years as i was at home whilst my then husband worked. I have to retrain and update my skills which i have been doing since last year. I ultimately want to come off benefits completely, but i can't see that happening before April of next year.

BarbaraJ5

terryw wrote: »

Barbara,

You must be very worried but please realize that it is not your view of "intentional homeless" that counts but the council's who are likely to view rent arrears as such.

The Section 21 Notice is a no fault notice. The Landlord now wants the property for some reason - it may not for the rent arrears. Could you not contact the Landlord direct to try to find out more?

The wannabee board has good advice even for prudent peeps. Worth a look.

The monthly/weekly thing is a bit of a red-herring - it is really down to budgeting properly.

bw

Hi, thanks for your input. I see what you mean. I have tried contacting the landlord, but have not had any correspondences from them at all. I contacted them to let them know what i would be paying towards the arrears and never got a reply. When i received the S.21 notice 2 days later, i figured out why the didn't and still haven't responded to any of my messages. Im still continuing to clear the arrears off as well as my other debts, so will see what happens. I will check out the wannabee board:)

BarbaraJ5

thorsoak wrote: »

You state that your two older children are in education ......what funding does the oldest one receive? A proportion of that will be for his/her housing - so that amount should go into the "pot" for your rent - plus an amount for food/heating.

Are you not receiving child maintenance from the other childrens' father/s? If not - chase them!

Hi,

My oldest daughter lives on her own and supports herself with a PT job as well as student loans, so she has nothing to contribute to our rent as she has her own to deal with. My 18 year old son is in fulltime education and doesn't get any help other than the benefits i get. My ex doesn't contribute to anything because he's a bitter fool.