to be pissed off with being offered a council FLAT instead of a HOUSE?

[OMFFG]

We have 4 DCs, youngest 16 months and they think this is suitable!! The flat is 3 bedrooms and on the 2nd floor of a small tower block and has balconies which I would be pretty worried one of the DCs may fall out of.

This is my worst frigging nightmare. We have been 'homeless' for almost 2 years and the council have housed us in temporary accommodation (private rented) which we have to pay market value for (£875 per month) even though we did not choose it and it's a complete shit hole. We could not leave as we would lose our priority on the council bidding list. We lost our house when DH was made redundant and could not afford to pay £1200+ to privately rent.

Now after all this they have offered us a fucking flat. I am furious because every week until last week, there were only offering 3 bed houses but we would always be 3/4 on the list. Now that a flat was offered, less people have bid on it so we got to the top of the list. I did not even bid on it, the council did. Apparently they can bid on 'our behalf' as we are homeless and if we refuse this flat, we will be taken off the housing list. How the hell will we cope in a flat???

The rent is 'only' £380 a month but a house would only be £20 a month more.

AIBU to tell them to stuff it up their arses?

Some people don't have enough money for rainy day savings.... and when smaller families have houses I think the OP has every right to be disappointed. I don't think turning a flat down will help her though.

OP your only option is to take the flat.

This ones funny.

Bupcakes in case you didnt realise we are not in Ethiopia...crass to try and draw a comparison don't you think?

Lots of the newer (therefore more likely to be available) council/housing association houses in our area do not have private gardens and are of the town house style - ie blocks that are mixed with flats/houses.

Parking is prioritised over gardens on new developments.

I regularly sit on our local panels to look at priorities/allocation and it's harsh - many people are told that they have to go to the private sector as they are deemed able to afford the rents. Additional space for trampolines is not a criteria.

Sausagesandmarmalade - RE insurance. Even if you DO have insurance, they often find a reason to get out of paying. . I get that most houses don't get repossessed AS quickly as the OP's seems to have - it took 18 months before mine got repossessed - but if you were living closer to the breadline to start with, and had overexteneded yourself on your ORIGINAL mortgage, then a redundancy can ensure a pretty quick repossession.

And as for those who say you should have savings behind you before you have lots of dc - I had £20k in savings. Didn't last long though, when we were both licing off it AND trying to cover our mortgage costs, and Estate agent fees while we tried to sell to downsize to something more affordable. They won't pay you ANY benefits if you have over £6,000 in the bank, you know!

It goes fairly quickly, and you can go from a £50k job and having a lovely big house in a naice area and £20k savings in the bank to being reliant on benefits and Social Housing within 2 years!

worra, that's a good point. The council flats I've seen were quite roomy.

On the plus side, with such a huge monthly saving the OP can buy a job lot of approx 6,148 bricks and build a BBQ for summer....

"Bupcakes in case you didnt realise we are not in Ethiopia...crass to try and draw a comparison don't you think?"

Oh no, I'm not trying to draw a comparison between here and Ethiopia. I'm just pointing out your vile attitude to poor people with "too many children".

Living off it - not licking off it - it wouldn't have kept us for nearly 2 years if we had just been licking it!

I actually think everyone is being very harsh on the OP.

I wouldn't advise accepting it on the assumption that you can apply for a council exchange. Most people wouldn't swap a house for a flat in a tower block.

I would suggest seeking advice from a CAB adviser. Would you definitely go to the bottom of the list? Write a letter explaining why the flat isn't suitable for your families needs.

I have PVC windows in my house that I hate but cannot afford to replace with wooden replica Edwardian ones to fit the rest of the house. There is no justice in this world!

bemybebe - I have wooden windows and they are a pita in winter. would love to swop with your nice pvc ones

Its not a vile attitude to anyone other than a looney liberal bleeding heart- its a responsible attitude to not have more kids when you are in finacial dire straits. Just like not going out and getting a provvy loan when you cant afford to feed your family.

OP - thanks for the unprovoked swearing attack. You prove my point better than I could.

However, YANBU. Please don't take the flat - people who swear and go for strangers generally don't make great new neighbours. And you're the one complaining about housing on a 'sink estate'?

I agree with what Huntycat has written.

Unfortunately, if you are relying on the council to house you, then you take the luck of the draw. No judging here, but the houses are more in demand than the flats. If it has more than one bedroom, then it is obviously intended to house a family.

How should the council decide, other than by randomly allocating what comes up to the people on the top of the list? I would think that most people would choose a house over a flat, but with a shortage of suitable property then allocation has to be fair. What is fair, then? Other than random allocation on a points system. Council allocation does not take into considreation personal preferences, only need.

I was homeless for a long time and was allocated a hideous property, totally unsuitable in a state of disrepair and filth. It has taken 7 years to turn it round through sheer hard work and resourcefulness from me, as I have no money and did it on the cheap. However I consider myself lucky and do not feel jealous or resentful that the next allocation was to someone similar to me who got a brand spanking new three bed ha property in a desirable part of town. That is just the luck of the draw and I am thankful that ds and I live in subsidised accommodation and are a part of this community and I do my utmost to contribute what I can to the local community in lieu of any financial contribution which I am unable, at present to do.

This includes voluntary work with the elderly, disabled and children who live locally. That is what a community is about. I was given a helping hand when I needed it and now am trying to help others. It is a springboard to build a new life and I will always be grateful for that chance.

Taken that ds and I were moved from pillar to post and lived in some very dangerous and awful place with no secure of tenancy, we are happy now. And grateful.

Op, look at it differently. It is the start of something new. Overcome your disappointment and thank your lucky stars you are not on the streets. Council flats and houses tend to be much larger than average, and with the money you are saving, you can make it nice.

Just because you came from a desirable four bed, well that was then and this is now. Make the most of it. Attitudes like this are what feeds the Daily fail and society in general, in their opinion that social housing tenants and benefit recipients are all take take take and puffed up with entitlement. Give something back for once.

This is very good spectator sport but i must go and do some work or it will be no pay, no eat, no house for me.

This baying mob would have you living in a cardboard box

Think people are missing the bigger picture which is that LA and Social Housing is about housing management. Why put people in unsuitable homes that other people actively want to live in. The OP could stay in her "shithole" until something that is going to help her family comes along.

As already pointed out it won't be suitable because of over crowding based on gender. She already has stuff for the garden - lots of families have no interest/means/time to have a garden (costs money to buy lawnmower, plants and other things to keep it tidy) so it's not unreasonable to move someone like this into a flat. Possibly there are families with older children who are desperate for housing who could make this flat work.

When I was in a hostel for the homeless I was given the only one bed flat (pregnant and single) whilst everyone else had tiny studio rooms when they were young couples. Not in any way fair and they had no chance of giving their children any sort of sleep routines, eating together or any other recommended child recommended child rearing techniques.

No usual- this 'baying mob' would advise if the OP is 'homeless' she takesa house that is offered for the time being and find this ideal HOUSE when circumstances pick up. Just like any private renter/owner would have to

Op...so what are you going to do?

She could live in hole in t ' road if it makes you happy EauDeLaPoisson

And what does your DH think?

Hazie - but the flat is suitable.

And you're right, I wouldnt swap my home for a flat, but I would in a heartbeat if I was 'homeless' and living in a 'shithole' which Im paying £875 a month for and had the chance to save up £500 a month.

Id bite the councils hand off tbh.

Yes, because ive said that all along haven't I?

"Its not a vile attitude to anyone other than a looney liberal bleeding heart- its a responsible attitude to not have more kids when you are in finacial dire straits. Just like not going out and getting a provvy loan when you cant afford to feed your family."

Bingo! loony liberal bleeding heart. Well done, EauDePoisson!

You don't know what the OP's situation was at the time she got pregnant. Stop being a judgy, Daily Mail-type foamer.