Is this overcrowding? Living in living room? Social housing/council home

[Hannahandbaby]

hey guys. asking for my cousin.

her and her parents moved into a 2 bedroom flat when she was 17, she is now 27

in 2018, 8 years ago, her parents separated.

she ended up living and sleeping in the living room because her mother moved into the her bedroom

so her dad lives in one bedroom, mum in another and daughter in living room

Someone moving out was not an option because:

father shortly before divorce ended up disabled, her mother worked minimum wage. Both parents are now pensioners.

so due to low income/pension credit/benefits impossible to find a place to rent

also one moving out would make the daughter homeless as she and and her mum wouldn’t be able to afford the rent.

also landlord now keeps rent reasonable, they wouldn’t be able to afford other private rents

few years ago my friend ended up disabled too (same illness as father, i think inherited from father) and due to illness had to cut hours and her health condition is getting worse and worse everyday. She is really scared she might have to gave up work completely and scared of the future

The living room connects to the kitchen so her parents pass her by to use kitchen everyday/constantly.

her parents are also having constant fights. They hate each other. Screaming on top of lungs, yelling, insulting each other, swearing at each other. so the stress of all this is awful. I myself witnessed this a few times while on phone with her or visiting her.

i know legally, this isn’t really overcrowding, her living in the living room.

but should she try applying anyway? Is there any chance they’ll accept her on list?

she doesn’t care about waiting even decades, she just wants to get on the list. She is terrified about the future.

this is east London, Redbridge

What would mn be like without ai I wonder? It’s really not the “ha!! Look what I know” some think…

Right, but the law has changed. She will not be disadvantaged in the private rental sector, so she has options now! (most local authorities would have rehomed her in the private rental sector anyway had she have approached them - they have various schemes to assist with this).

In a nutshell, she can choose between staying put with her parents, or renting alone in the PRS (with HB if necessary).

She's unlikely to be offered social housing as they wouldn't be deemed as overcrowded, and if she xished to move out she'd be expected to find accomodation in the PRS. There may be a general list she can apply to be on, but she'd be unlikely to ever get to the top of it based on her current circumstances.

They still will and you are very delusional if they won’t. It’ll just be better hidden. They’ll allow people to apply but they’ll just pick applicants not on benefits. And you can’t prove discrimination that way.

i have some relatives and friends on benefits, working people on low income etc

believe me, watching them end up homeless and the whole trauma and stress of eviction etc

staying in my house while homeless.

I really do wish what you’re saying could be true but it’s not

there are explanations how this will be done online.

i really suggest you inform yourself and read the truth about this subject before you make such confident statements

Right. They won’t discriminate by letting people on benefits apply

they still won’t pick them though. Out of many applicants They’ll pick people not on benefits instead.

they just won’t tell you reason anymore you are not picked.

good luck proving discrimination that way :)

Trust me, I'm very well informed.

Your friend needs to choose between living alone in the PRS, or living with her family in the PRS. The local authority will almost certainly have a service to help her find suitable accommodation in the PRS if she's struggling to secure it herself. I'd suggest you read your LA's housing policy for the various assistance schemes they offer.

You don't have to like that answer, but it the reality

Don’t they all get housing benefits, pip etc?

You really are not.

and I don’t mind realistic answers. Like this last reply of yours. This was helpful, I didn’t know councils can help getting private home. As you can see I didn’t call anyone else who said she won’t get anything in this thread hostile.

i just didn’t appreciate you accusing my sick relative in a bad situation and me desperate to help them making stuff up just to get council home when I was simply explaining their situation. The sarcastic mocking passive aggressive smileys etc when I’m just desperate to help someone.

Surely you can understand my fear and anxiety given the long history of people on benefits/disabled people facing homelessness. I witnessed this myself up close and it’s horrific. Not wanting to end up on the street disabled is not it “wanting easier/better” it’s a genuine fear many people have and it’s horrible enough being healthy, let alone disabled.

I hope you or your loved one never end up in same situation as my cousin.

It's shit for everyone in the PRS.

The renter's reform will mean it's illegal to discriminate against people on benefits, which is surely a good thing, levelling the playing field. (Not to mention other great improvements for renters).

A couple and an adult child would not be considered overcrowded in a property with 2 bedrooms and a living room (even if they accrpted the Dad needed his own room due to disability). 3 rooms, 3 adults = adequately housed.

The expectation would be that should they wish to move that they find accommodation in the PRS.

I'm very well informed, as I spent many years working in the social housing sector, and still keep myself informed.

I've seen many, many people trying to play the system, and feeling entitled to social housing because their circumstances are less than ideal. They rarely get it. Almost everyone in the PRS would prefer to be in social housing. Sadly there's not enough to go round, and the situation you described wouldn't get you on the housing list in any of the LAs I worked (although policy varies between LAs).

You can get screens to minimise parents seeing your friend as they pass to get access to the kitchen.

They all have each other for support. It's more than some have.

OP you keep talking about overcrowding but it's not overcrowding is it.

The parents are moving out. She will have a 2 bed home to herself, how is that overcrowded?

There’s no timeline for the parents to move out - so the question is whether the current situation qualifies as overcrowding for OP’s friend to go on the list. Presumably if one or both parents moved out before she reached the top of the list, she would have to update on her situation.

I think OP needs to break it down

If she applies for housing based on currently being overcrowded, she is unlikely to be high on the list as right now she is adequately housed. There are whole families living in one room who will have much higher eligibility. So she is likely to still be there when parents move out.

Then she will have to withdraw her housing request and start all over again, this time because her home is too big for her.

But, crucially, whilst she is waiting to be housed, how is she going to pay her rent and utilities all on her own? She can't. So she is likely to be evicted.

She doesn't have the luxury of time, she has to find herself somewhere now, before the parents move out.

OP I don't think you answered this suggestion by a pp - why don't the mum and daughter move out now into a one bed (share the bedroom). Then when mum moves to her retirement flat, the daughter can stay in the rental?

I don’t think the DD earns/expects enough in benefits to support the rent on her own.

So she is likely to still be there when parents move out.

The parents are on the list separately so I imagine her dad may be higher than her mum owing to disability. I thus think dad getting an assisted place of some kind and mum staying in PR with DD is most likely.

I don’t think the DD earns/expects enough in benefits to support the rent on her own.

A one bed flat?

Yes even a studio. No way on earth she could afford that. Working full time people barely can afford it. Let alone an elderly woman on low income pension credit. Also no one wants to rent to to people like this, choosing between someone working full time applicant or someone on persion credit and housing benefit they’ll chose the working full time one. Also I think being on elderly social home waiting list and her being assessed as living in unsuitable condition she is worried of she moves it will be affected.

Yes but these families don’t need and can’t be housed in studio flats.

single people and families are waiting for completely different things. They are not like waiting or competing for one/same thing

A few people told me single people are housed much quicker than families because families need more bedrooms and bigger homes. Families with kids can’t be housed in studios. And There are more studios than bigger homes. Looking at the waiting lists on the council website I can see that might be true, the waiting times even for 1/ 2 bedroom are significantly higher than studio flat.

also she doesn’t even mind waiting even a decades. She just wants to get on list. Because her disability is progressive, it’s guaranteed to worsen in the future and she is terrified.

Someone also told us that when her parents move out she will be made homeless, she won’t have to start a new claim, she will be moved up the list.

Someone also told us that when her parents move out she will be made homeless, she won’t have to start a new claim, she will be moved up the list.

She will be housed in B&B with a shared bathroom. Possibly in another area. Homeless people don't get to choose, they are allocated adequate emergency housing and then stay on the list for as long as it takes.

Trust me, she does not want to get to the point where she is homeless.

I am not sure she would be made homeless (though the new Renters’ Rights act may impact this).

At the moment she is in private rental with two other tenants. If two of those tenants need to give notice to the landlord because they both receive an offer of over 60s housing, then your friend will presumably also have to give notice. If that happens, then I think she has given up her tenancy and “made herself” homeless.

ETA very much open to correction on this

She can't currently go on the list due to overcrowding as they're not overcrowded. She's adequately housed. If she gives notice on her place, or defaults on the rent, she'll be deemed as 'intentionally homeless' and won't be entitled to social housing.

She'll be expected to rent a property in the PRS and claim housing benefit, just like everyone else. Being on benefits or not having a high income isn't a fast track in and of itself into social housing. Whilst the situation you describe is unfortunate, it won't give her any priority whatsoever with regard to eligibility for social housing.

So, like it or not, regardless that the situation she is in is not ideal, she needs to accept that social housing is unlikely to be an option for her. She's just one of many, many people in the same situation. She would be best served seeking out studio or 1 bed accommodation in the private rented sector. She's actually one of the people the new renters rights act introduced today will benefit.

she just wouldn’t be able to pay/afford rent if other people leave. It wouldn’t be a choice i think

if she can’t afford to private rent another home

She just wouldn’t be able to pay rent if other people leave. It wouldn’t be a choice

Defaulting on rent is counted as making yourself intentionally homeless.

I mean what other choice is there? If she can’t pass affordability checks to rent a place

I mean hopefully everything will be ok, but I’m just thinking of plan b just in case

She could privately rent with housing benefit.

She really needs to NOT default on her rent in the existing home, as that would be classed as making herself 'intentionally homeless' and the the LA would not help her at all.

She, like many other low income single people, needs to seek out a studio or 1 bed in the PRS and apply for housing benefit.

Being single and low income does not automatically qualify her for social housing.

The other choice is what everyone on this thread has been trying to tell you.

She needs to find out what financial assistance she is eligible for and start looking in the PRS for a place that she can afford with housing benefit and any other disability allowances she qualifies for.