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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To be envious that my neighbour lives in a council house........

304 replies

EnviousEvie · 28/09/2011 10:04

and pays £600 a month less than me for the exact same bloody house (her's is nicer inside) next door to mine?

Difference is hers is a council house, mine is a private rental. The owner of mine bought it from the council and now rents it out while he lives in a 4 bed detached house in a nicer part of town. We pay £950 a month, neighbour pays council £350 a month (3 bed terrace). We had to move here after selling our house last year because DH lost his job and we needed to release the small amount of equity we had to pay the bills we were behind on because we were terrified of being in debt. Our rent is now £150 a month higher than our mortgage was.

We struggle every bloody month and live on 'value' food. We are not entitled to housing benefit (DH now working again after a year, I work part time - 3DCs). Neighbour's DH is an accountant so she can afford not to work at all. That £600 would make a massive difference in our lives but we have not got a chance in hell of getting a council house. There are over 5000 people on the waiting list in my area. We are on the list but have been told that it could be over 5 years before we have a chance. Love my neighbour to bits but can't help feeling pissed off about it!

AIBU to think that this is bloody unfair?

OP posts:
PeachyWhoCannotType · 28/09/2011 17:46

FLaming are you my mate with a new name....?

Flamingredhead · 28/09/2011 17:50

Yes peachy :)

Flamingredhead · 28/09/2011 17:50

I'm a circus performer on other daysGrin

PeachyWhoCannotType · 28/09/2011 17:52

Figured so, in which case it would be bloody disgusting if they didn't give you a life tenancy

Although i think 5 year ones are divisive: if there's any one thing that would motivate someone into not trying to further themselves, I imagine losing your home and probably being thrown back onto a volatile rental marjet would be it! At the elast tehre should be exceptions for hard to house people. Without knwoing us and just seeing us on paper I reckon and LL that did rent to us would have to be daft.

CupOfBrownJoy · 28/09/2011 17:54

Life isn't fair

Get over it.

Sevenfold · 28/09/2011 17:56

Flamingredhead but do you have an uppy downy bath?

seriously though, it is not people in council houses fault that private rent is so high, it is not their fault that houses are so expensive to buy.
the idea of only having a council house (and I assume it will be the same with HA) but I do wonder what they will do with people once the tenancy is up. will they just boot them out onto the street?
what about people who live in disabled access houses, that have been adapted to meet their needs.
something should be done to bring house prices down, not sure how that would be done, but homes should be to live in and not to make money from.
there should be more social housing, and affordable housing.
and by affordable I don't mean 300 thousand for a 3 bed house.

PeachyWhoCannotType · 28/09/2011 17:57

Normally I hate that phrase with a vengeance but this time I agree in that council houses tend (I know not always but certainly post sell off in many cases) to end up with those whom life has been a bit less fair on

if yopu end up homeless then you will get +++++ points too. Nobody is excluded

PeachyWhoCannotType · 28/09/2011 17:58

Sevenfold reassessment then out if found to be earning whatever they set it at

Disabled houses or houses given to people for similar reasons (eg a family that needs a certain number of bedrooms to house a disabled aprent say) should be exempt. They are not. Nothing new then.

Sevenfold · 28/09/2011 17:59

sorry missed out only having a tenancy for 5 years

PeachyWhoCannotType · 28/09/2011 18:00

Housing here is quite cheap- you can actually buy a 2bed for about £99k in an OK area

trouble is that was in itself caused by 20% unemployment plus very low wages overall; when we moved here DH was tempted to move jobs to this side of the water to cut down on commute, until he found theyw anted to pay him £10k a year less and that was a local norm! Bridge tolls are a PITA but not THAT bad a PITA!

Sevenfold · 28/09/2011 18:02

peachy hope so
we are in a HA house, not by choice, we had our own house(well the bank owned it really) but cos it couldn't be adapted to meet dd's needs, we were moved into a HA house.

Flamingredhead · 28/09/2011 18:05

Sevenfold adapted houses will still come under for life tennacys well at least here as just had the sane conversation today with my OT

I think after 5 tears they can look see if you need house of that size and if not your have 3 offers/chances to bid on somewhere else

With idea Bering it will stop it getting to the stage where you end up with elderly people In to big house .

Flamingredhead · 28/09/2011 18:05

Sevenfold not fair I want uppey Downey bath s( sulks)

Sevenfold · 28/09/2011 18:09

I wonder how long they will keep that though, how long before someone on a 5 year tenancy will be moaning about a disabled person on a long term tenancy.

flamingredhead, it took a while to get, the grant and stuff, but oh the bath is brilliant

Original poster
EnviousEvie · 28/09/2011 18:13

PeachyWhoCannotType - life has not been fair on us either. It has been shit actually and has caused me MH problems. What has pissed me off today is that a house in our road has been advertised on the council website for bids at £77 per week, and is exactly the same as ours. I have bid on it but I know I will never get it as there are normally about 250 odd bids for each house and we are usually about no. 195! I have had to really scrape the money together for my DS's 1st cub camp at the weekend (£60!!!, he was desperate to go and we have not had even a trip to the beach this summer) and can't afford our car tax that is due on Friday.

All this talk about people with SN DCs getting council houses is a bit a red herring. Of course families with SN DCs should get priority but I can assure you that most of my neighbours DCs are perfectly fine. My DC has a SN as well FFS but I don't bleat about it to get sympathy.

OP posts:
Sevenfold · 28/09/2011 18:14

wow talk about arsey,

usualsuspect · 28/09/2011 18:16

I'm glad you are not my neighbour EnviousEve

Your last post was out of order btw

oksonowwhat · 28/09/2011 18:16

Totally annoying me how EnviousEvie seems to think we all want to 'leave the council estates' they are not all that bad you know ....

I live in a HA house, in a quite area. I can actually buy my house, it is not called right to buy it is called something like, Social Homebuy. They are always sending me leaflets asking me if i want to do that!

My rent is £520 per month. It is literally killing me paying that amount and i work all hours god sends. Oh and EE i am doing an nvq in my particular workplace to hopefully increase my wages.

I consider myself very lucky to have a secure home, i have spent years without that kind of security. You will not hear me complaining. I just have money problems due to being the only wage earner with three kids to support.

My neighbour owns her house and pays less than me. Hey ho!

ReindeerBollocks · 28/09/2011 18:17

The reason private rents are so high is people buying multiple properties (startig with council/HA houses) and needing to cover their mortgage on those properties, pushing up the rental rates.

They need to work on this issue (not the immigration issue Hmm) as this has been and continues to be damaging to our economy IMO and experience.

FWIW they do try and push elderly people out of their homes on the basis of overcrowding. That is the problem with Council and HA houses, yes you have more rights over the house, but you never fully own it, and you can and should be moved if a young family are in desperate need.

So, basically OP, it's your (greedy) landlords fault for making the rent so high, it is so high I would assume he is covering his mortgage and pocketing some profit from you each month. I pay astronomical rent too and you are definitely not being unreasonable.

Thingumy · 28/09/2011 18:18

wow.

just wow.

PeachyWhoCannotType · 28/09/2011 18:19

Neither do I Envious, only to explain teh system but truth is you just want sympathy no?

I am in private BTW. Have been for eyars never ahd a council house despite all teh crap listed above that we have been through, I am terrified of losing the boys to foster care - very likely- if we lose this place between now and Christmas - whilst we await a place. And yet I still do not begrduge the people whoa re already in a HA house anything, becuase I assume they need that home.

usualsuspect · 28/09/2011 18:19

I don't believe a word shes posted tbh

ReindeerBollocks · 28/09/2011 18:20

Not overcrowding - under used.

Brain not in gear when thinking!

thefirstMrsDeVere · 28/09/2011 18:21

Bleat? How fucking dare you?

Go away.

thefirstMrsDeVere · 28/09/2011 18:21

reindeer quick highjackette - how is DS doing?

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