To wonder if social services become involved if you're made homeless?

Horrid position!

I suppose what you have to hang on to is you haven't beej served a s21... This happened to us when the landlord suddenly wanted to sell...

You may be able to do a deal. Our agents buggered up the s21 making it invalid... Apparently this happens in a third of all cases... This meant it would take even longer to get us out...

We went early on the proviso that they paid all our moving costs... Which theu did... Or else we could have been there for a very long time...

Yes the overcrowding definition hasn't been updated since 1924 or something and includes living rooms, tiny boxrooms too small for a single bed and large hallways and kitchens as "bedrooms".

You send a PM by clicking "Message Poster" on the end of the blue bar with the poster's name :)

You could argue on grounds of hardship - that all of the private rents are insecure and it's causing financial hardship to you to have to move every year or two.

Although it doesn't really come under the umbrella. But just looking at this. www.horsham.gov.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0011/8300/Housing-Register-and-Nominations-Policy-July-2014.pdf

in my case my landlord tried to up my rent by 100 a WEEK grasping bastard i couldnt afford it and the housing benefit (quite rightly) refused to cover it as it was way over the LHA

I told my landlord I couldn't afford it and he chucked his dummy and sent me an eviction notice

so maybe it would be a GOOD thing if your LL increases the rent as that could well be the route that you will end up going down

feel free to PM if you want any more advice because there were certain things I was advised to do that helped the process of getting housed along a bit

no confused not at all

the security is what I like most about renting from council, the fact its not a rip off like private renting is just a bonus.

private renting is hideous and I don't blame anyone for doing whatever they have to to get out of it

they didn't in my case

(was single parent and landlord gave us notice but I couldn't afford to move, so similar to op's poss situation)

dc and i got a council house in the 11th hour, literally days before eviction

was few years ago though

Have you been to their drop-in for advice? If you need to be within a 15m radius of a particular local hub there are definitely less expensive areas to live.

Have you been to their drop-in for advice? If you need to be within a 15m radius of a particular local hub there are definitely less expensive areas to live.

no you can go on the normal list anytime at my council and build up waiting time. Some house are for normal allocation and some are for the homeless list, from going on the council homeless list i was housed in 13 weeks but that was 6 year ago, the last person i know who went through the homeless system was about 2 yr ago and she went into a temp flat where she stayed for 7m before she got a 2 bed flat in the area she wanted. It all depends on the council really i think and your situation, i was classed as homeless as i had an eviction notice but stayed in the house till the end

I was made homeless by a landlord suddenly selling the house we rented. I had deposit etc for renting a new house but there were few private rentals available in the area, and was up against several other applicants each time and lost out every time (possibly due to having pets).

The council saved us by finding us a house. I don't know what we would have done otherwise, there was nothing else. Terrifying.

SS did not get involved, there was no need. A difficult situation but very obvious the children were looked after well and I was doing all I could to find them a home, any home.

The council rent here is slightly below private rent, but only slightly, nothing like the op's area.

I agree with previous comments - why not look in a wider area? P/t work for you, even one evening a week would help you save? Put applications in to housing associations and council, you don't have to be threatened with homelessness to apply. Doing something proactive takes away from the terror.

and have you also applied to all the Housing Associations in your area, you need to find out how to get on their lists

and btw if you want to go down the council house route i wouldn't say you want to take private, say you are fed up with private, you cant afford it and cant keep moving, you will have to go with the council procedure and work with them, they wont house you where you want to be house on a certain estate, you will basically get what your given, if it is the same as ours you can appeal the house offered but you would need strong grounds to do so, i don't want to live there wont wash, after appeal you will either win and be offered another house but will have no say in that one either or you will have one more chance to take the first one. I have no idea what your council do, which council is it and i will have a look, its better to go into it prepared

I must admit, i never felt secure in private and wanted to get out after a few houses but i have got friends who have got lovely LL's and just want to have them rent as long as possible. It's not your fault confuse, thousands of people probably feel the same way, im in the NE so it's not as bad here and quite easy to get private housing.

Our council have a list of approved private LL's, maybe try these and you might be able to find a more secure tenancy. If i was you feeling like this i would go down the council homeless route, there's absolutely no shame in living on a council estate, our's is nice and there is a real sense of community. I think for people who have never lived on one they see the sink estate and think that is what it is going to be like, it might be for some but i can honestly say where i am the estate are a lot better than they used to be.

NanaNina Tue 07-Apr-15 18:18:11
Please correct me if I'm wrong but I think even in
f people are deemed to be intentionally homeless if they are in priority need as they have children, there is still a duty to offer temporary accommodation.

Yes i believe so, the last person i know who found themselves homeless split from her partner and was moved into a high rise flat the council had put aside for for people on the homeless list as temporary accomodation, she was there about 7 month but finally got a lovely 2 bed flat for her and her daughter. It wont be nice and it will be stressful, you will probably have to stay somewhere you never thought you would.

Op many before you and many after you will go through this, there is no shame in it, it's not pleasant but at the end of it you will probably get a council house, you might hit lucky and get a really nice one, even if its on an estate you deem not so nice you will still feel that it is your home and won't have the threat of tenancies coming to an end. I can see how its scary for someone who has never been in council accomadation

Please correct me if I'm wrong but I think even in
f people are deemed to be intentionally homeless if they are in priority need as they have children, there is still a duty to offer temporary accommodation.

It actually states in the Children Act 1989 that homeless is not a reason to take children into care. Hence they should be negotiating with the Housing Dept to re-house the family, although this doesn't always carry much weight. BUT if push comes to shove, the LA Social Services should provide set up costs of a private rent out of S.17 of the CA 1989 but they will do everything to prevent this as their budgets are seriously depleted.

Fifi I absolutely agree with you about the "right to buy" - thanks to Margaret Thatcher. Then of course new council houses were not built and it's easy to see why we are now in this ludicrous situation when Housing authorities are having to house people in private rented accommodation and pay the high rent demanded by the owner.

In the 1970s there was a Fair Rent Act - that's what's needed now to stop owners making rich pickings from buy to lets, but that's never going to happen regardless of what happens on 7th May. Things will only get worse as many people who can now withdraw their pension at age 55 are apparently planning on "buying-to-let" so keeping people renting for ever and a day.

The other issue is the social cleansing of London carried out by the Tories - moving people who were claiming high levels of HB, to anywhere in the country where rents are cheap, regardless of the fact that people are being moved from their families, support, children's school etc. What do the Tories care about all that - nothing. So ghettos will be created in areas of the country where rents are low and people uprooted from the area in which they've always lived.

i know a few people who have gone through the homeless procedure for a council house and as far as i know SS have not been involved, loads of people end up homeless for whatever reason, i think SS would only get involved if you were intentionally homeless or through DV etc as the council are putting people in temporary homeless accommodation regularly, i can't see it being viable for SS to be involved in all of them just for being homeless and in council allocated accommodation

Are you on the council list already? i would always advise anyone in private to put their name on the normal waiting list, it took my ex SIL just over 2 years to get to the top for a flat, her DM put her on as soon as she was able to and she had lots of waiting time, she just used to refuse them which you can do on the normal list as you get more choice of where you want to be, you cant do that on the homeless list. She ended up buying a house but she is still on the council list as you never know what could happen.

In your situation i would get on the council homeless list and the normal list, as soon as you can start doing what ever procedure your council has for the waiting list start bidding or whatever and see where it goes but have the backup plan for private. You could hit lucky and get a really nice council house then in the future look to buying it. It is just pot luck what house or estate you are offered.

As fr as i know i think SS would only get involced if you were not helping yourself, following council procedure and going into a hostel, BnB they have allocated you is following procedure as opposed to remaining homeless