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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:
SunflowersSmile · 07/03/2012 17:12

And I can be jealous if I damn well want to Mrs Potter!!

OhDoAdmitMrsDeVere · 07/03/2012 17:14

soda why dont you just admit you didnt read my post properly?

I made it perfectly clear I didnt hate the servicemen and women I hated the institution.

How dare you tell me I shouldnt. I am really glad they do lots of nice things for leavers now but they did FUCK ALL for us and my OH cant walk and my DD is dead.
And to bring into it the deaths of serving soldiers was crap. What has that got to do with it? I despise it when people use these terrible events to somehow bully a 'civilian' into backing off.

I got called a judgemental cunt by a soldier who was told to come on here by his wife because we were discussing how hard it is for service personnel when they leave. Why was I a cunt? Because I was concerned about the high rates of homelesness and MH issues in ex forces.

Do NOT miminize my family's experience to suit yourself.

cuteboots · 07/03/2012 17:23

OMG the world has gone mad!! I thought social housing was there for people who couldnt afford to rent or buy privately? £2,100 after bills really? Or is this thread just to wind people up on a wednesday

lisaro · 07/03/2012 17:24

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

OhDoAdmitMrsDeVere · 07/03/2012 17:29

thank you lisaro. I am so glad you understand.
I am fed up of being gagged by people who wont hear a word against the institution that fucked up my family and left us to it.
OH came home from a war, he was in his early twenties, they disbanded his battalion and were just about to redeploy them all to NI. He left. He got NO help. Nothing.

A few years back we had to go begging to the RBL (who were fantastic) to make up the shortfall on the adaptations to the house.

SaggyOldClothCatPuss · 07/03/2012 17:30

I think you are a selfish twat, who should use your 'disposable income' to buy or privately rent your own home, thus leaving the LA flat for someone who really needs it.

usualsuspect · 07/03/2012 17:31

No social housing is not just for the benefit scrounging , plasma TV owning poor people

HTH

OpinionatedMum · 07/03/2012 17:37

I have had severe mental health issues. I have met a few ex service personell in mental hospitals.

OpinionatedMum · 07/03/2012 17:40

We all have a right to call the OP a selfish twat because she is a council tenant.

Don't express your opinions in a polite way. She is one of those subhuman scroungers.

sodapops · 07/03/2012 17:51

I am not ignorant, blind or minimizing anyone's situation. You said you hate the Army. You did not say you hate the Army because of what they did in the GW which caused you to lose your DD and for your DH to become disabled. So how was I to know?

You said the Army get rid of people without giving a shit. I pointed out how that was wrong, that is all.

I brought the today's loss of lives into it because it is about respect and I thought MrsDV's rant about the Army was ill timed and dis respectful. There is a vast trend on MN that the Forces are thick, murderers, cannon fodder, etc and I thought MrsDV's post was another one of those. I am sorry I got the wrong end of the stick.

I don't presume that every one is treated well when they leave the Forces, lisaro, I know they are not. But on the whole, they are! And when I say "last couple of years" I mean last couple of years service, not in the last couple of years in time I am neither ill informed or thougtless. You have no idea about me, my DH's job nothing. So don't be so fecking presumptious yourself.

5inthebed · 07/03/2012 17:55

IIRC, Op did not own her own house, she rented and when her DH was made redundant they couldn't afford rent and LL evicted them.

Glad you have seen sense op and taken the flat. There are far worse places to live than a flat with DC (been there myself)

SaggyOldClothCatPuss · 07/03/2012 17:55

I didn't call the OP a selfish twat because she lives in a council house. I called her a selfish twat for having a council house when she has more than enough money to privately rent or buy her own property. The LA lists are full of people who are really in need who are actually desperate for social housing.

SpectacularChoice · 07/03/2012 17:58

Good luck in your new home.

Petrean · 07/03/2012 18:01

My opinion, for what it is worth..

I truly believe this OP is a troll and I'm not sure this thread in particular is an appropriate place to discuss whether or not the army look after their service personnel in their final years in the army or indeed afterwards.

I do have more to say on this matter, but I think this thread in particular is not the place.

tethersend · 07/03/2012 18:04

Council housing should only be for the very, very grateful.

And the humble.

And the meek.

OhDoAdmitMrsDeVere · 07/03/2012 18:06

oh give it a fucking rest soda.

It was fairly obvious from my post that I had personal reason to hate the army. You just wanted to jump in and be pious.

You bringing in the death of those men was ill timed. Dont use the death of those men to make your spurious point. It is highly disrespectful.

Dont lump me in with people who have started threads that you dont like. They have nothing to do with me.

You were wrong. Own up and back off.

GetOrfMoiiLand · 07/03/2012 18:08

I don't think the OP is a selfish twat because she has opted to move into a flkat where her monthly rent will be about a quarter of what she has been paying so far.

If you were in that situation would you be that selfless because of percieved morals and the fact that others are worse off? I know I wouldn't.

OhDoAdmitMrsDeVere · 07/03/2012 18:11

Pet

You are right. But to be honest there is no place to discuss it. Unfortunately if you try you get accused of hating soldiers Confused

Just hope Soda is luckier than we were. Much, much luckier.

Hiding thread now.

Debs75 · 07/03/2012 18:13

Why isn't there enough social housing?
Maggie Thatcher, letting councils sell off stock but stopping them from building more.
Keeping the scheme going and now offering bigger discounts when there is so obviously a huge lack of council houses.

OP may have a good level of income left after rent but it is highly unlikely she will have a big enough deposit for a start. As for private rent, it will take her longer to save said deposit so she is better off staying where she is.
Quite simple really, let her have this great, cheap flat so she can buy a house in the future or kick her out into private rent and see her struggle

bronze · 07/03/2012 18:14

Well op I wish you the best of luck and keep saving

Al0uise · 07/03/2012 18:16

The labour government could have stopped rtb anytime they wanted between 1997 and 2010. Thats quite a long time frame to implement a policy, they must have had their reasons for perpetuating it.

OpinionatedMum · 07/03/2012 18:18

If you read the OP you would see "the selfish twat" is using the disposable income to save for a house.

Flatbread · 07/03/2012 18:18

Congratulations, OP. I am truly happy for you Smile

Since you are more comfortable now, keep fifty quid a week for yourself (and another fifty towards a future mortgage)

Use the money on yourself to get your confidence back, be it yoga classes, pilates, massage or nails or whatever. Don't forget that you are important and worthwhile

petitema · 07/03/2012 18:18

That isn't loads of money with 4 dcs though, is it? Hmm

GetOrfMoiiLand · 07/03/2012 18:18

I think lots of housing associations now have stopped RTB - my mother lives in a HA house and she will never be allowed to buy it - and I think quite a lot of new developments are the same.

I don't know if you can still buy council owned and managed properties.

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