How does this happen?

Slinky

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4244049

"My mother is moving into a council bungalow and selling her house"

Excuse my ignorance, but how come this lady can move into a council bungalow when she already owns property?

Is this common? I thought there were long lists of 'homeless' people waiting?

Mrs_Z

Could be sheltered accommodation provided by the Council. In some areas there are no waiting lists for those.

FireWyrm

My father moved into semi-sheltered housing owned by the council even though he was living with myself and my husband at the time. I guess he told them the situation was 'untennable' and frankly, we were getting on each others' nerves anyway.

Davesnave

It will be sheltered accommodation and she'll have been on a list and qualified in the usual way, not jumped ahead of anyone.

My father owned his own bungalow and still qualified for a council/HA flat because he needed to be nearer to me for support.

Fire_Fox

Bungalow is the clue. My aunt has applied for sheltered housing despite being a homeowner. She is in her seventies with health problems, and could not afford to buy a sheltered place outright nor obviously get a mortgage.

bitsandpieces

Mrs_Z wrote: »

Could be sheltered accommodation provided by the Council. In some areas there are no waiting lists for those.

And, if properties are standing vacant, it's much better to get a tenant in them (so they're used and the council is getting rent) than to leave them empty.

Madjock

Slinky wrote: »

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4244049

"My mother is moving into a council bungalow and selling her house"

Excuse my ignorance, but how come this lady can move into a council bungalow when she already owns property?

Is this common? I thought there were long lists of 'homeless' people waiting?

My mum has been on the list with her local authority for 3 years. She is a widow living alone in a 3 bed detached house with a large garden. She has COPD among other things, and has to crawl upstairs to go to bed at night. She is moving to a 1 bed bungalow which will greatly improve her quality of life and will sell her house in due course. If she had sold her house then bid for a local authority home, she would possibly have slid down the bandings for leaving herself "intentionally homeless".

Happy?