HA housing

Curry_Queen

Does anyone have any experience of renting from Housing Associations and if so, could you tell me roughly how long it takes them to make a decision after sending in the application forms please?

It must be almost three weeks now since I returned all the forms to them (they don't half wanna know a lot!) and I've not heard a thing since. I did wonder whether they may in the process of contacting GP and other medical people and waiting for a reply from them, but as I've not seen any of them in over 6mths I'm not sure exactly what they can tell the HA. (Although it might just make them realise I do still exist and haven't fallen off the face of the planet :rolleyes: )

I'm still looking at private properties but to be honest I'd rather not have to pay out in the region of £1500 in deposits/fees etc if the HA are willing to help me find somewhere else, plus I could do with the added security I presume I'd get from them over a private landlord.

Cheers

elona

I do not have any advice but just wanted to wish you the best of luck:j

Penny-Pincher!!

Hi There

I dont understand fully what you mean? Are you being made homeless or have you just filled in the forms direct from them? Normally HA only are involved when linked directly with the homeless unit within your local council.

We are with a HA within Kent, but we were referred as we were made homeless by a very nasty landlord just over 4 years ago.

Within our borough and the next 3 boroughs HA's dont take in tenants privately but only through the council homeless unit. When we asked about 8 years ago when we had to sell our house to pay up debt-we were told that it would take 2-3 years minimum as the council allocate points and the higher points the more chance of a property :eek: If you are in a difficult situation it may be worth your while going to the council and filling in their forms so they can assess you more in depth, if you are ill or have disabilities you get awarded more points etc.

You do have to accept there first choice (ours was a 2 bed 1st floor flat), but was a roof over our heads so we were grateful regardless. 2 years ago we were able to move on medical grounds and now have a lovely 2 bed semi with huge front and back garden :beer: we have been very lucky and count my blessings daily. Our rent is £88 per week and we live near central london and this includes our water rates too. A house over the road exactly the same as mine is £180 pw :eek:

Good Luck

Penny-Pincher!!
xxxx

Curry_Queen

No, I'm not being made homeless but I do need to move on medical grounds. I've filled in all the forms they sent me, providing all relevant information and medical contacts etc, but I was hoping to have heard something by now. Maybe I'm just being too impatient, but I'm desparate to get out of where I am and hate the "not knowing" anything.

I'm not sure how their points system works, although from reading the bumph they sent me there seems to be three tiers, so I'm just hoping I get enough points to be in the top tier.

Thanks for the info hun

kellemeek

Hi there,
If you have a local NHB north british housing !!!!!!, they are fantastic about helping you move. We filled out the forms and got a house within a month. I suggest you give them a try because they have houses everywhere.


hth

Kelle

Penny-Pincher!!

Hi Again

I know its a long process, but stick with it. Im sure you will be fine I would just harass them and keep chasing them up.

I hope it all works out.
Good Luck

Penny-Pincher
xxx

Curry_Queen

kellemeek wrote:

Hi there,
If you have a local NHB north british housing !!!!!!, they are fantastic about helping you move. We filled out the forms and got a house within a month. I suggest you give them a try because they have houses everywhere.


hth

Kelle

We only have the one HA that provides any form of social housing in this area so choice is very limited unfortunately, but thanks for the suggestion

Savvy_Sue

Used to work for a HA, not in your area, and it varies from area to area and HA to HA how they work. Some run a common waiting list with the council, others don't.

TBH I don't know how long it would be before you hear from them, I THINK but can't be certain we used to send an acknowledgement for every form, but the wait could be quite lengthy unless we just happened to have a suitable property available. If they have a website that would be worth researching: somewhere it should say what their 'service standards' are or something like that, ie how long before we contact you, what we do to keep in touch etc.

If you can't find any clues there, and I know you're not a great one for using the phone (can't blame you, btw!) do they have an email address you could use? If not, drop them a line and ask for an indication.

They may be confirming your medical and other details etc, or they may just not have been in touch because they have nothing to say. But there is no harm in reminding them of your continued existence at least once a month!

the other question is whether your local council runs a Key Deposit Scheme to help with the costs of moving within the private rented sector. I don't know what the T&C would be and whether this has already been suggested to you, but if not, it has now!

But yes, generally with a HA you have better security of tenure than with a private landlord. And generally it's cheaper. And generally, although getting any necessary repairs done can be a hassle, they do have certain minimum standards and time limits etc.

Good luck!

Curry_Queen

Thanks! ... there is an email address on their website but I think I'll hang on till after the weekend now and see if anything turns up Monday and if not drop them a line to find out how things are progressing.

I'd not heard of the Key Deposit Scheme so I'll look into that next week too, thank you

Queenie

Good luck, CQ - the waiting and uncertainly is always hard

Fran

C_Q

It really is down to the demand in the area(s) you have put down on the application form and then also how quick the turnover is - if no-one moves out then there isn't a place available. If there is only one HA in your area and that's the only one you have applied for then it sounds like it might take a while to get rehoused. Are there any others within the general area you could apply to in order to give yourself more of a chance?