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Original poster

UPDATE on to be pissed off I have been offered a council FLAT instead of a house?

262 replies

OMFFG · 07/03/2012 14:45

Thought I would update on my previous thread as you were all so sympathetic and concerned for me Grin.

We have taken the flat and will move in tomorrow. We have no choice and will be unable to be put on the transfer list for a year and will then probably have to wait a further 2/3 years for a house to come up.

The flat is on the (top) 2nd floor of a small block. We are 'lucky' in that the block is being upgraded and they have put in new windows/balcony doors/front doors and replaced all the railings around the two balconies. There is one off the kitchen and one off the lounge. The flat is very light and airy (although was stinky) and DH has painted/bleached it to within an inch of it's life and it is now presentable. There was decent laminate floor down already and it has a recently fitted kitchen, new toilet!! and almost new radiators. We did not found any mould/damp at all which we were very impressed by! The DCs rooms are big enough and mine and DH's is much bigger than our current one.

There are 18 flats in the block in all and every 3 flats (Grd/1st/2nd floor) gets to share a reasonable sized gated garden that each overlooks. We all have large sheds as well so the trampoline and bikes can all get stored in there.

The block seems quite quiet. I am a bit meh about it now. I am hoping there will be other DCs in there that mine can play with and I will be quite happy. We have a very large town park/farm/paddling pool area within 10 mins walk. DD's sec school is walking distance and her mates live around the corner.

We have worked out that after paying rent on this, we will have over £2100 a month to live on! That is with just DH working. I can decide if I want to go back to work or not probably after the summer when DC4 is 2.

I have probably been worried for nothing and am looking forward to getting back on track and saving for a new house of our own.

Thanks to the council and all those who sent their good wishes Thanks.

OP posts:
FriendofDorothy · 07/03/2012 22:24

Good God. £2100 is what we are going to end up paying for a mortgage... and it won't even be a mansion or anything. I wish we had that sort of money left over once we had paid for our accommodation!

BeyondTheLimitsOfAcceptability · 07/03/2012 22:34

I'm writing this as someone who doesn't have anywhere near £2k left after rent and rents an ex council house privately for twice what my neighbours pay...

Congratulations OP, I'm glad it worked out for you.

SaggyOldClothCatPuss · 07/03/2012 22:37

Erm... Ok. Her DP got made redundant. Fair enough. They were homeless briefly, fair enough. But he now has a job and they have more than enough money to rent somewhere themselves. Starting a thread moaning about not being offered the subsidised housing that she WANTS, is BU, and then starting another bragging that she has taken said housing and that she is quids in, is still BU!

AdventureInKL · 07/03/2012 22:42

Well, this made me laugh...

I was at a conference the other day where the leader of a council in the south of England was boasting about his social housing statistics - they had cleared their list by 30% in months! How? Not by building or buying more houses, no, by ringing up thousands of people and telling them they had no hope of getting a home so were therefore being taken off the list!

Politicians, eh?!

BeyondTheLimitsOfAcceptability · 07/03/2012 22:46

But what about the bond that they would have to pay upfront? And maybe a few extra months rent on top? And a credit check?
They might be able to afford the rent alone each month privately, but they've been paying huge rent for months, I'm assuming they have nothing saved?

And (sorry, can't remember if they rented or owned before redundancy) surely defaulting on their mortgage (if they had one) will have affected their credit rating rather badly?

Yes, she was BU to moan in the first place, but I can kind of see why she did moan, she was expecting a nice house and told she had to take a flat that she thought would be worse than it was

Hellboy · 07/03/2012 22:46

My post was deleted? Shock

MyLittleMiracle · 07/03/2012 23:05

I was in lots of debt prior to coming down, and its now all sorted, bt my credit is rubbish and i had no deposit etc, so i put an ad on gumtree and got somewhere truly amazing, with no deposit. My suggestion to people who are going to moan about what they do get is to at least TRY to find somewhere themselves. It cost me nothing, JUST TIME, all of about 20 minutes longer than the council, actually probably less, with teh housing options interviews etc!

Fundi · 07/03/2012 23:18

OP, what will the rent be on this flat?

If you have £2100 disposable income after rent for bills (so probably what, £400 a month?) you have £1700.

Divide that by 4 and you have £425 a week post bills to do whatever the fuckity fuck with it.

Even if you have £300 a week after bills that is a MASSIVE HUGE amount of money.

Even if you then spend £150 of that on food and household stuff (which you would be being a dick to do so quite frankly; can be dome cheaper than that) you still have £150 a WEEK to burn.

I fucking give up.

That so many families are struggling makes me sick. Makes me sicker that you are now gloating.

Enjoy your spacious flat. Enjoy your disposable income. Enjoy living in a house/flat that someone else would properly ebenfit from. Like a woman fleeing from DV. Or those who are homeless and without income.

HeroFactory · 07/03/2012 23:20

They are currently officially HOMELESS!!!

How else FI you think they got to the top of the housing register??!!

Fundi · 07/03/2012 23:26

No they aren't. They now have a flat.

And prior to this, they were living in private rented accommodation afair. They were kicked out yes, but were given notice so were never left homeless.

MyLittleMiracle · 07/03/2012 23:27

So am I, unless you consider it reasonable for me to go back to someone who stabbed me!!!!!!! YET the council wont even help me, I AM NOT EVEN ON TEH REGISTER! Apparently he has told the other council he doesnt plan on returning YET is still on the tenancy so legally has a right to live at the property! I had to find myself somewhere and was still fighting the decision, until this place came up. It has taken 4months and still havent received a decision. Better now though i have a place! But this does pee me off a little bit. Maybe councils shoudl start charging rent dependent upon income a little more? And use the extra money to build more homes? ANYONE THINK THIS IS A GOOD IDEA?

HeroFactory · 07/03/2012 23:28

They haven't moved in yet! No, prior to this they were/still are for another day, in emergency council accommodation! ( which us the house)0

ComposHat · 07/03/2012 23:32

Somone more cynical than me might examine the way the original post is written, describing the condition of the flat etc. in considerable detail before oh so casually dropping her husband's salary in at the end - almost like the pay off line in a piece of fiction, with the deliberate intention to provoke angry responses.

But of course, I would say it was a mere coincidence and every word is true.

MyLittleMiracle · 07/03/2012 23:32

The council didnt even provide that, i stayed at mums where i am now but she made it clear i couldnt stay! So how fair is that? I am not saying they shouldnt have been housed i just think the OP shouldnt be complaining that tehy ahve been given a flat. I wouldnt have cared what it was, 8th floor tower block with no lift, i would have died for (not literally obviously), i was very very lucky with what i got and yes it needs redecorating to my taste and the back garden needs tidying up and the front needs some weed killer, BUT BEGGARS CANNOT BE CHOOSERS!

CreepyWeeBrackets · 07/03/2012 23:52

OP how did you get to go in and clean and paint it before moving day?

I've rented privately and otherwise and you have to move out and in on the same day.

HeroFactory · 08/03/2012 00:01

creepy I move next week, we get a few days 'grace'

HeroFactory · 08/03/2012 00:02

Wonder if you still get decorating vouchers!

breatheslowly · 08/03/2012 00:06

Hero - when you say "I" are you the OP moving or someone else?

Clownsarescary · 08/03/2012 00:06

OP don't take the piss out of those that supported you Angry

HeroFactory · 08/03/2012 00:09

I'm 'me'.... I'm moving next week, think the op says she is moving tomorrow

horsetowater · 08/03/2012 00:21

I believe some councils are consideing means testing social housing, the sooner the better. This op makes me wretch.

CreepyWeeBrackets · 08/03/2012 00:29

Oh, okay. I've always had to move the same day. Didn't get decorating vouchers in 2003 when I moved into a 1-bed pensioner flat with DD which had been inhabited by a nail-maniac who loved shit-brown and forest-green gloss paint. Fun fun.

The council tipped all of his shite out onto the few metres of front lawn too. Bricks and concrete and bits of wood then threatened me a few months later for not getting rid of them Hmm

I am stunned at Council House envy. It really isn't all that good.

Debs75 · 08/03/2012 07:47

Creepy if you move between rented accommodation you have the chance to pay an extra week or so on the new our old house so you get longer to move and sort things out. With OPs large income she could quite easily pay for an extra week to give her time to decorate.

Yes I admit labour could of changed the right to buy rules and it is pretty shocking they didn't.

The amount of council jealousy on here is unbelievable, making people move to higher rent just becauser they can afford it means they will be always be stuck in rented. If you want to save for a house you either have to stay with mum and dad or take a low rent house. It's nit perfect and those of you who have to rent high private rents struggle but unfortunately there it's not enough affordable housing for everyone

sairygamp · 08/03/2012 08:21

You can get in to decorate before moving in day if it's empty and you are prepared to pay two rents ie: where you are living and the new place. Won't have been problem for the OP what with all that spare cash I guess...

EightiesChick · 08/03/2012 08:27

Worth a reread of ComposHat's post just above:

Somone more cynical than me might examine the way the original post is written, describing the condition of the flat etc. in considerable detail before oh so casually dropping her husband's salary in at the end - almost like the pay off line in a piece of fiction, with the deliberate intention to provoke angry responses.

But of course, I would say it was a mere coincidence and every word is true.