Right to buy

chinau9

Lived in my council home for 17 years so I think I deserve a discount. There are lots of people who envy when others get the right to buy. Only cos they may not have the same opportuntity. I work full time but cannot afford to buy a house on the open market. Hence why I went for the right to buy. The way thing are going with interest rates increasing it has become very difficult for 1st time buyers to even get on the property ladder.

pickles110564 wrote: »

If they have been in their homes for several years they have probably more than paid for it anyway.
Everybody who is hard working deserves the right to buy their own home.

chinau9

scope wrote: »

Why do some people expect to get something for nothing?

This scheme should have been scrapped years ago - why should my tax money go towards paying for somebodies home? First a reduced rent, then a discount?

Maybe you are rich and lucky enough to get on the property ladder but like many other people out there, we cannot all get on the property ladder with the way interest rates are rising.

Point of correction, I have never received housing benefit so your tax money is not going towards me.

Some people are just full of envy at others progress. As for the discount, I deserve it as I have lived in my home long enough and maintain my home myself WITHOUT the councils help. I choose to maintain my home cos I live in it and refused to let the councils cowboys repair my home. So in fact Im saving you tax money so get your facts right before you make your judgemental statements.

TheImportanceOfBeingIdle

Right To Buy - The reason that I have to rent privately to keep a roof over my familys head. Council houses should be just that. Council houses. NOT sold off cheaply because you've lived there a while and used as a step onto the property ladder.

chinau9

There are extreme cutbacks every year with the councils and in fact they don't even want to maintain their homes. Lucky for you that your landlord maintains his or her home as its in their own interest. Like you, I was in a council home paying full rent to keep a roof over my familes head too. I agree that some people can afford to rent privately or even buy theeir own house but they choose get a council home cos its cheaper. Point of correction my house was sold to me at market vaule with a small discount. In fact Im still having to pay service charges so I am saving your tax payers money by giving back the discount.

TheImportanceOfBeingIdle wrote: »

Right To Buy - The reason that I have to rent privately to keep a roof over my familys head. Council houses should be just that. Council houses. NOT sold off cheaply because you've lived there a while and used as a step onto the property ladder.

mr.broderick

Hi nice comments..are you chinese by the way?

TheImportanceOfBeingIdle

chinau9 wrote: »

There are extreme cutbacks every year with the councils and in fact they don't even want to maintain their homes. Lucky for you that your landlord maintains his or her home as its in their own interest. Like you, I was in a council home paying full rent to keep a roof over my familes head too. I agree that some people can afford to rent privately or even buy theeir own house but they choose get a council home cos its cheaper. Point of correction my house was sold to me at market vaule with a small discount. In fact Im still having to pay service charges so I am saving your tax payers money by giving back the discount.

Councils don't want to maintain their homes??? Are you on drugs? They're spending millions sorting out their houses under the Better Homes scheme. So please do tell me where they are cutting back.

I have no problem with paying taxes to provide people with a home. I have problems with those people then taking the p!ss and using mine and others' taxes to have a laugh and get a house with a huge discount. As said above the RTB scheme should be scrapped. If you can't get on the property ladder then tough. I can't either. I doubt my landlady is gonna give me a special deal with this house because I have paid her rent for the past god knows how long. What makes those in council properties any different? The fact that you chose to maintain your own home is neither here nor there. You are expected to keep it in order as per your tenancy agreement. Any repairs are down to the council and not you so that aint a valid argument.

olly300

chinau9 wrote: »

T I agree that some people can afford to rent privately or even buy theeir own house but they choose get a council home cos its cheaper.

I don't know where you live but I've yet to find anyone in the South East who chooses to rent privately over a council house.

The simple fact of the matter is RTB was a Tory scheme to get more Tory voters and cut the number of social housing for people who never would or will be able to buy due to the jobs they do. These jobs include some of things that are important to this country's health i.e. binmen.

Biffa

Thanks to the RTB scheme, there is now a dire shortage of social housing available as Council's are NOT allowed to re-build. Where I work, we have a stock of just 3,000 properties, of which a third are one bed flats or warden aided properties. There is a desperate shortage of family accommodation (ie: 2/3/4 bed houses) and over 4,500 applications on the system for people waiting to get a council property. This now means that people are having to wait around 4 - 5 years to be offered a property. Private renting is the only way for a lot of people to get a property at the moment, but it's not exactly affordable for a lot of people. Compare private renting a 3 bed property at £450 - 550 a month to having a council rent of £60 per week and a lot of people are priced out of the market. Plus, a lot of private landlords won't accept children, pets, smokers or HB claimants.

As a Homeless officer, our workload this year has gone through the roof - partly due to interest rate rises and owner occupiers having their homes repossessed; the number of 16/17 year olds coming through the system and the number of people making homeless applications to try and beat the system to get a property quicker...... it's a wonder our department hasn't had a collective nervous breakdown yet!

bubblegum2

TheImportanceOfBeingIdle wrote: »

Councils don't want to maintain their homes??? Are you on drugs? They're spending millions sorting out their houses under the Better Homes scheme. So please do tell me where they are cutting back.

Are you a council tenent?

The reason I am asking is because for the past 4 years the council are doing less and less repairs to council houses due to running out of this 'better homes money'. My sons bedroom window was rotten the bottom of the frame was missing and the glass was very loose I was told the window would be replaced in 18 months!!!!! I had to stuff the bottom of the window frame with old fabric and secure the fabric in place with masking tape

I know this sounds drastic but its better than the idea the council suggested which was to board it up with a sheet of wood for upto 18 months then when I mentioned fire safety because if there was a fire the window couldn't be used as an exit due to it being boarded they said that I would have to take full responsability for it!!!! :mad:

If a private landlord was to board up a upstairs window for 18 months i'm sure they would find themself with a very large fine and even locked up in prison for 6 months for causing their tenants to be at risk in the event of a fire

Plus don't get me started on my garden that was collapsing due to a susspected water/drainage pipe that they said they couldn't fix due to costing thousands and that they would only be able to fix it AFTER it finally collapes!!!

With 18 month waits for repairs to be done and thats after 6 months of waiting for an inspector to come and 'see' the repairs in the first place many tenants are loosing faith in their councils

Generali

Government shouldn't be providing housing for people. They're terrible at it. Ever been to a council estate in Elephant and Castle or Loughborough Junction? People shouldn't be made to live like that.

Another example of the failure of socialism.