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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To leave a council tenancy after 13 years

65 replies

trashcanjunkie · 01/10/2017 09:35

The back story - 13 years ago, during an awfu time in my life, I was evicted from a private rental when my partner of five years left me for another woman. At the time I had an eight year old and was pregnant with twins. I got housed by the council in a three bedroom 1st floor flat in a really cool area close to the city centre. Fast forward thirteen years and the twins are 12, eldest left bed elsewhere and I got married this year to a lovely man. We both have good jobs, with potential to move up the career ladder. For me this is really recent. I'd planned to buy the flat I'm in at some stage, but increasingly it feels wrong. Personally, although we would receive a 40% discount due to years I've lived here, we will need to stay for another three years before we are able to legally sell or rent it out. The flat is too small for a family of four. There's no outside space and the kitchen is six by four foot, bathroom similar. There's only one room to use for living/dining. If I buy this year, the children will be almost 16 before we think about sizing up. It's been the plan since before I met my husband to do this, basically to make money on the place. It says occurred to me that I can just leave this tenancy and we can look to buy a bigger house. My husband has a property he rents out. It's still on his normal mortgage as it's been less than a year, although we will be changing to a more suitable mortgage. I want to use some remortgage money as deposit
On a new place. Morally this feels right. Or aibu?

OP posts:
trashcanjunkie · 01/10/2017 09:37

Good grief excuse typos and length. Eldest lives elsewhere...Hmm

OP posts:
shooeghMcFee · 01/10/2017 09:45

Council tenancies are like gold dust and the chance to buy in a cool area is a fantastic deal. It's up to you of course but I would be very careful about relinquishing your council flat. You may live to regret it.

Fishcalledlola · 01/10/2017 09:46

I'm our area the council ask for first refusal to buy the property back at full market value. You are not necessarily taking a property out of social housing.
If you were to buy, sell it back to the council.

ginghamstarfish · 01/10/2017 11:09

Yes, by asking you already know that morally it's right to leave the council flat to be used by someone who actually needs it, rather than to hang on there just so you can make a profit from it. Selling off council property - worst idea ever ....

Unescorted · 01/10/2017 11:13

That discount is paid for by the affordable homes budget. The same budget that would otherwise be used to pay for new affordable housing.

alltouchedout · 01/10/2017 11:15

If you don't need it, move on. I'm glad it qas available to you when you were in need and has been a good home for you and your dc for years. Why should you make money on it now?

Mombie2016 · 01/10/2017 11:18

Move on! You needed it back the you don't now. Leave it for someone else who is in desperate need.

I'm leaving my council house to go to University. I too was left in a shit situation with two babies and I can't imagine depriving someone of social housing they need as much as I did to make a quick buck ffs.

KC225 · 01/10/2017 11:22

Have you approached the council about paying you to leave. My neighbours when an lived in London were given 15,000 to given up their two bedroomed flat. They used it to put down on a deposit when they moved north to be his family.

I know councils are different and maybe the scheme doesn't exist where you are but perhaps you could use it to buy into your DH's mortgage and to give you a bit more leverage.

MyDcAreMarvel · 01/10/2017 11:29

Of course it's big enough. Just use one the bed rooms as a den/tv room.

notgivingin789 · 01/10/2017 11:47

Just want to say, well done OP for what you have achieved so far. It must of not been easy going through what you went through.

Council houses are like gold dust ! But I do think you should move on if you found somewhere else better.

Laulau79 · 01/10/2017 11:53

OP- I don’t think you will be able to buy your council flat as your husband has a property to qualify for the right to buy the council property has to be your only home & they will check

spidey66 · 01/10/2017 11:57

Council tenancies are like gold dust and the chance to buy in a cool area is a fantastic deal.

IMHO the fact they're like gold dust is exactly the reason NOT to buy it.

We had a council flat, we gave it up to buy elsewhere. I think council tenancies should remain in council ownership for those who need them.

Iamagreyhoundhearmeroar · 01/10/2017 11:59

Why would the Council sell to a tenant at a 40% discount and then buy the property back from them at full market value?

Not being goady; it just sounds odd?

Floellabumbags · 01/10/2017 12:03

IMHO the fact they're like gold dust is exactly the reason NOT to buy it

I couldn't agree more. OP I think that you're going to do the right thing, you sound like a good sort.

trashcanjunkie · 01/10/2017 12:04

I really appreciate the replies.
I think I need to make an appointment with a financial advisor. DH's property is worth £75,000 and has £63,000 left on the mortgage. My flat's worth £120,000 but I think I'd get 40% discount if I bought it. Currently pay £400 monthly rent. DH's property just about pays for itself. If we leave the mortgage he has in place and don't change to buy to let, it's on an interest rate of around a quarter of a percent. Our joint income before tax is £58,000. DH has about £20,00 personal debt. I have about £8,000. We'd need around £20,000 for a deposit. My head is not managing to think how best to move forwards. We could remain in the current place, spend a wedge sorting it out 'tiny house' style with clever space saving rooms etc, or just save life or mad for two years to get the deposit for our own place. Or stay, or buy and stay, or sell his (moving there isn't an option) or... or.... or....

OP posts:
Glumglowworm · 01/10/2017 12:07

Move on now. Leave the council property to be used by someone who is just as desperate as you were 13 years ago.

You don't want to stay another theee years anyway, so don't use it as a cash cow

Iamagreyhoundhearmeroar · 01/10/2017 12:08

But they won't allow you to buy it if you already own a property... Having it in your DH's name is irrelevant.

ChinUpChestOut · 01/10/2017 12:08

I think because you are already asking the question, you already know what the right thing to do is. As some have already pointed out, you may not qualify now anyway to buy the property at a discount. Even so, the morally right thing is to move on and let some other person - perhaps another desperate single mother - have the opportunity to live somewhere nice, when she needs it the most.

And good on you for doing so well in your life, and still thinking about what the right thing to do is.

Iamagreyhoundhearmeroar · 01/10/2017 12:09

They shouldn't really allow you to continue you with the tenancy, in an ideal world. Why do you think you should buy a council flat at a massive discount when you already own a separate property??

MrsPicklesonSmythe · 01/10/2017 12:17

I've just bought my council place after 12 years exactly because there was no other way we could afford to move out of it. Yes, it's morally corrupt and it's not great to be part of the problem but anyone who has that opportunity and doesn't take it is a bit mad really.
I fully expect to be flamed but quite honestly, I wasn't given it because I'd had an easy time of it and I've never been out of work. I often worked 2-3 jobs at a time to get to the position I'm in now so that and giving my kids any sort of life outweighs the guilt.
I had a 60% discount on a London property. The rent I receive allows me to pay rent on a suitable property further away in a safer area. It's priced slightly under market rate.
If there had been an alternative way of doing things I would have but my council doesn't run schemes like the one mentioned up thread.
The RTB legislation might be shit but it's there to give people a chance in life and I've chosen to take it.

Hovens · 01/10/2017 12:18

I was in a similar situation OP and I chose to buy my council flat OP. For me it was a way of providing security for my dc, as my DS now lives there and it means he has a secure home in an area where he grew up. We had to go through a lot for the security of our council flat (had to leave a DV relationship, deal with council bureaucracy and it was in a very deprived neighbourhood, although it's gentrified a lot now) so it wasn't simply random luck that we ended up with the flat we had, and many people turned up their noses at the homes on our estate.

Under RTB rules, you'd be able to buy your flat if it's your only property - the fact your DH owns a property would not count as one you own. My DH had his own home when I bought my flat - the purchase was done in my own name and they didn't ask about his property at all.

Theresnonamesleft · 01/10/2017 12:20

Don't buy the council flat, even if you are able to.
Social housing stock is being massively depleted and not replaced.
What happens when there's no social housing left? Especially when caps are thrown into the equation.

x2boys · 01/10/2017 12:21

It doesn't really matter if strangers on the internet think it's the wrong thing to do they have no idea where you live or wether it's hard to get a council property where you live do what you think is right for your family.

Fishcalledlola · 01/10/2017 12:23

iamagrey that's what they do in our area. Also, if you sell the property in the first 5 years, you have to pay the discount back too. We are in the NW.

Laulau79 · 01/10/2017 12:27

MrsPicklesonSmythe - you have just bought your council house & are already renting it out? Be careful you don’t get caught as that is illegal!

Hovens - you should of told the council that your husband already owns a home, have you got different sir names?