Living next to asylum seeker HMO, ask me anything

Have you read the op's posts? They are very balanced, factual and compassionate.

These people can have had terrible lives and trauma and also the way they have been housed can cause difficulties and worry to the op. Both can be true. In some cases, with a steady flow of men, the former will not always be true.

These difficulties have included being disturbed through the night by working illegally, never knowing who is next door because of the transience of the situation, worrying that someone may come through into her home through the opening between loft spaces. Being asked intrusive questions about her own status as a lone female next door. Her home being unsellable and uninsurable.

The op has described conversations with these men so I hardly think she is being unpleasant, obstructive or aggressive. She has described typing directions to the nearest Tesco into their phone. This sounds helpful to me. It is a wise strategy to be open to conversation and curious to understand their situation as it is better to know who your neighbour is.

All men? Quelle surprise. This isn't asylum; this is an army.

Why do people add "funded by the government" after such statements? Surely people are aware that the asylum act covers such things? They can't fund rent, bills, food and english classes out of £49 per week and they aren't entitled to work or have recourse to any government funding such as student loans. I personally am more than happy that my taxes are going towards people wanting to better themselves with education. They don't have to take them, it's a choice and I'm very glad there are ones that do. There have been great stories in our city of refugees going onto postgrad education and young women who came here aged 8-10 who are now working in local government.

This sounds really stressful OP, and an unsafe environment for a woman to live alone in particular.

This is why I can't stand middle-class support for all of this - they like preaching from their pulpits that everyone should be illegal immigrant or refugee friendly, but that's because they make the assumption they'll be dumped on the working classes whom they regard as scum.

Yes, let's welcome them by turning parts of the UK into a complete dump.

Landlord companies are making a killing out of this. Buying up properties, usually in the poorest neighbourhoods, and turning them into HMOs for asylum seeking males. And the neighbours just have to put up with it or move out if they can afford to, which then causes further decline in the area.

I feel your pain. I bought a Victorian terrace house in 2008. I'm in the Midlands. On the edge of an area known as drug dealing etc but ok. Very quiet, clean and mostly populated by retired people who'd probably paid about 2k (if that) when they originally bought the houses. Then came the credit crunch, people dying, relatives selling house off cheap to landlords and it became a shit hole.

It really opened my eyes and I couldn't wait to get out but was in negative equity and had to wait until the property market recovered. The first HMO's were full of Polish guys but gradually it changed and we'd have Africans, Pakistanis, various Middle Eastern types. The ones renting whole houses as families weren't too bad unless it was the Roma as they moved in en masse. My neighbour let her house to one of the Roma, young couple with two kids and I cried when I found out. It was awful. Having to hear him beating her up in front of his father, him standing in front of me outlining his dick through his trousers (Think he thought single woman must be frustrated), They were, at least very clean. Young wife, about 19, used to clean and scrub all day, every day.

The other ones think nothing of throwing all sorts of rubbish into the street. Literally fridges, washing machines, sofas. Pull up in cars and empty overflowing ashtrays in piles in the middle of the pavement (yes pavement, not gutter) and throw rotting food, takeaway cartons etc out the door or car. It was truly like living in the middle of a rubbish dump.

I managed to move out just before the covid lockdown and have never been so thankful. I used to send pictures to the council and they'd send street cleaners but nothing ever done to stop the filthy habits, yet my son, 17 at the time, working long hours, stood waiting for bus and dropped cigarette butt. Fined £75. Personally I'd have told them to f.... off but he's not that type.

Regardless of what anyone says there is two tier justice in the UK. This will probably get deleted as some just don't want to hear the facts.

This surprised me too, OP originally states she hardly speaks to them, but knows a lot of personal info. I did wonder was this a thinly veiled anti asylum seeker thread.

I think your maths is wrong.
12 in 1000 is 1.2%.

As an aside OP, fit a couple of bolts to your loft hatch as a safety measure.

In this area they use the local food bank.
It's only open 3 days a week now because they can't get volunteers to staff it and deal with these rude entitled, grabby, people.

And the migrants all seem to have come from France or via other European countries where there are no wars.

I would be very willing to bet that an asylum seeker getting free housing, utility bills and council tax paid has more disposable cash (whether that is £10 after food or £49 including food) each week than a single British person on universal credit.

A google tells me a single person under 25 gets £338.58 a month (and has to pay their utility bills from that as well as all the other things you have mentioned - food, toiletaries, a phone).
A single person over 25 gets 424.90 (and again has to pay their bills).

I think the asylum seeker would have more money and at least they will be warm, dry (under a maintained roof) - and if food provided fed - if food not provided able to use their oven as the bills are paid.

They hope to get a house or flat. All provided by the ever-generous local council or housing association, funded by the taxpayer. Great.

There are no British Forces in Iran, Eritrea, Sudan or Somalia and never have been. British Forces left Pakistan in 1947.(Those countries make up the majority of refugees to UK BTW)
Your post is arrant nonsense.

Do you live opposite a school?

Saying ‘absolutely’ does not make a lie a fact.

Or you’re doing your job wrong.

I have asylum seekers who live in a group home on my college course this year.
Funded by the govt.

And taking leases on properties owned by private landlords, whether HMOs or ordinary flats and houses, is much cheaper for councils than putting people in hotels/B&Bs.

I know of at least 2 councils that do this in my area; they take a 3-year lease and the owners like it because the income is guaranteed, the councils bear much of the maintenance cost and undertake to hand the properties back in the same condition they got them in.

The bit that got me was how often the properties they lease were former council properties that had been bought by tenants under RTB and subsequently sold on. The councils were paying landlords to house tenants in properties that the council used to own...

Perhaps you could buy OPs house and welcome them?

If you can't move house - work, kids etc why not invite a few to live with you and put your money where your mouth is?
https://refugeesathome.org/
You can help them make the best life for themselves.
Or is it just other people that should welcome them?

😮

OP, this is an interesting thread and you have managed to discuss the (many!) negatives without resorting to hyperbole.
You clearly see the people as people, and that is great.

I don't know the answers to any of this but I have found your responses very thought provoking.

But how would you stop landlords renting their HMO to the council and if that were the case where would the people you talk of live?

Councils had so many budget cuts and had to make so many saving under the Conservative government, that properties were sold. Councils cannot afford to reinstate these either as council housing or council facilities. Government departments the same. Private venture steps in because of the gaps left. (Same in alternative provision, residential children’s care, care homes). Massive costs to the tax payer because their is not enough publically owned provision to meet demand.

Not all accommodation is council owned, a lot is private. There's a huge industry supporting asylum immigration and a lot of people are making a lot of money out of it. Those people aren't the asylum seekers either.

Greed, human greed and selfishness in these cases of landlords buying up loads of houses. They work on increased capital investment over time, time where they don’t have a responsibility for the property. Leases to the councils actually pays less than market rent rates. (near to me anyway)

There is always someone out there wanting to make a quick buck.

...so they leave their wives and children to be murdered by these mysterious forces? Yeah sure they do.