AIBU to think it shouldn't be so expensive to move into a council house?!

[FreshStarts00]

NC.
So we've finally been allocated a house! Viewing is really soon. They want first 2 weeks rent 6 days after the viewing, then they say they can give us the keys 2 days after that.
Few hiccups:
We'd be paying rent on 2 houses. Need to give landlord 1 months notice from the day we pay rent, which is the 1st of the month. We barely have anything left over as it is after bills. Let alone magically coming up with another £250+.
They don't provide flooring.... AIBU to think this is a hazard with a 3 Y/O?? Splinters and nails and rough floorboards
No white goods whatsoever... So we'd be without an oven and a washing machine. Also microwave ect but that's not vital.
No bath- LO will just have to get over her hatred of showers, this one isn't really a major issue.

Anyone got any magical ideas?
Or been in a similar situation?
AIBU to think it shouldn't be so expensive to move into a council house?!

wild It happens in private rental, of course it does. But calling the police doesn't get the equipment back and the council will have to suck up the cost.

wild And do you think good DONT get stolen in private rental?

It's not being ridiculous. Most councils's housing budgets would in no way stretch to providing all this. Ours can't even stay on top of the damp coming in from the shared roof. We can prefer all we want, but then there's reality

In most other civilised countries in Europe people would be (and are) shocked at the conditions that some people live in in this country and here people actually DEFEND the council for not sorting out damp problems which can lead to serious health conditions for tenants. It beggars belief really. Every citizen, no matter how poor should be entitled to a safe, dry, warm place to live.

Yanbu to thong its expensive but yabu to think that it wouldn't be. Off course they can provide endless white goods. Every time someone moved out a new fitter kitchen? New carpets etc? However if the carpets of previous tenant are decent they should offer to leave them. I was in my flat 12 months, carpets were spotless and it grieved me to rip them up for a guy to move in and buy new ones. EEvenif they weren't his colour (he want much impressed with pink walls but purple carpets might have been mote his style) it wouldn't have a been a temporary stop gap.

Rent in advance I think is ridiculous - its just something people cannot afford when they're on low income, waiting for a deposit to be refunded etc.

And the op has that. A safe dry place to call home.

Why should the goverment provide peoples carpets and items? Its cheaper rent and more secure renting. It would come down to the tax payers money to cover the costs. Me for one doesnt want to pay for other peoples carpets its bad enough i have to pay for other people to live. There are charitys for people like this

Tonic you are being a dick. People fall on hard times for all sorts of reasons so try some compassion for a change. You made nasty sweeping statements about all benefits claimants. Not everyone has the same life chances

OP hasn't said she has fallen on hard times neither was I making a nasty sweeping statement about all benefits claimants. I was referencing the OP who thinks she should have everything handed to her.

When we brought our house (very lucky) we had no flooring for a years. We did without a proper cooker and no washing machine. We brought cheap fridge freezer then slowly saved up for the rest. That's life

You can buy the white goods cheap second hand - I paid £4 for my first cooker. Talking about £2k for that sort of stuff is ridiculous. I also bought some cheap carpet from an auction sale and had a lot of laughs with my friends fitting it.

What is the point in helping people if they end up living without floors or even a fridge? Because even though we help people, they still have a responsibility to help themselves.

should be let in a realistically livable condition and to my mind that includes carpets, an oven and a fridge as the bare minimum The law begs to differ. The rules on habitation do not include floor finishes and white goods, otherwise a whole lot of people renting or selling houses would not be able to do what they do.

When renting or buying privately, you often pay for things such as carpets and white goods within the rent you pay. If you want cheap rent, you have to lower expectations.

There are so many charities, funds that people can access in this situation, this problem is not really a problem it is a whinge about entitlement.

Oh good grief there are some utter shits about. Of course if you are in work and own your own house then that's a direct reflection on how great a human being you are; if you're on benefits and/or unemployed then you are a scrounging wastral who barely deserves the crumbs from our table.

Some people may have a house and a job but they have fuck all compassion, humanity and empathy.

OP, you must have found this a horrible wake-up to the raw realities of life in social housing in today's Britain. You will manage, it does improve, and not everyone thinks you're a pillock for voicing your surprise.

I don't think you're being unreasonable. I think most of the people who have answered this post sound like a nasty bunch. They don't know your circumstances and are quick to judge. Ignore them. You'll get by and you'll find solutions. I hope friends and family can maybe help you out in the meantime. Think positive and do your best. :-)

I still remember 21 years ago getting my council flat in a high rise. No flooring-just bitumen, no white goods, no heating in my toddler's room, no decor. I cried and danced around that flat with my wee boy in my arms, singing, 'we have a home, we have a home!', cuddling my boy and feeling like I had won the lottery.

You were never going to get white goods and carpets. You have a home. Congratulations!

Our HA has something like 20, 000 properties. Could you imagine the cost over the last 13 years of fitting a cooker, fridge, carpets into every property that become vacant? Covering replacmenets if they broke. PAT testing every year. And people dissapear in the middle of the night taking all the copper piping and flooding their homes - you really think they wouldnt sell a cooker or take it with them?

Wowzers... exploded thread much.
I didn't intend on coming across "entitled" or anything, I simply have never lived in a council house. If you're here to sneer save your breath for elsewhere...
Was looking for tips ect, leave your snidey comments at the door please!
Obvs will second hand the oven & washing machine.
But don't understand why they have to rip up the carpets?! If it's a hygiene issue surely there should be some sort of form we could sign to accept risks of keeping it?!
It's the timings thats stuffed us more.
Rent 6 days after viewing?!
Does that honestly not seem rushed to anyone else?

wild Why are you calling people dicks just because they don't agree with you?

Because dick is probably the most polite term I can think of. It's not just not agreeing with me, it's about general sneering and lack of compassion for poor people. You might be fine now but we could all be struck down by misfortune such as ill health, job loss etc and we would then need to turn to the state for support. I wouldn't want to live somewhere in winter with no oven, no fridge, no washing machine and bare floors. I don't think someone else should have to do that just because they are poor and should be grateful for whatever I get.

I would rather than the billions spent on refurbing Buckingham Palace or being donated to the DUP be used to make sure all tenants live in decent properties.

and FYI to all the SAHM haters me and DP work full time....

Cabin you say "Me for one doesnt want to pay for other peoples carpets its bad enough i have to pay for other people to live".

I am very upset that the free education you had, courtesy of the state, paid for by others, failed to educate you to a point where not only do you have a grasp of English, but also have any kind of fucking humanity. You don't pay for other people to live - you contribute to a tax system that enables us ALL to have roads, NHS, Police, bins collected, and education. The reason there is not ENOUGH is because our previous and current governments chose to withhold money to the benefit of the state.

Maybe if they did supply white goods, tenants would not purchase cheap, old, dangerous appliances that cause a fire hazard, like in Grenfell Tower

Grenfell was caused by a whole lot more than a faulty fridge!

What a delightful thread. Op, if there’s any chance you’re still about then yes I agree it is weird to lift floor coverings between tenancies. The unfurnished property we rented privately came with carpets and a cooker. Even if this isn’t a surprise, when you and people around you are on low income it is a real challenge moving house.

People have mentioned that help is available. You should ask the housing officer about options available locally. Also freecycle, freehold and generally let it be known that you’re after furniture etc. We had bed, 2 sofas, dining table, chairs given to us. We gave a friend £50 for a washing machine. We got a fridge but didn’t have a freezer for a year. This was a private tenancy, having to add floor coverings on would have been a real challenge.

OP hasn't said she has fallen on hard times neither was I making a nasty sweeping statement about all benefits claimants.

Oh no, because we all know how eager the council is to hand out tenancies to the affluent and employed. Sends you right to the top of the list, that does.

I was referencing the OP who thinks she should have everything handed to her

She actually did not say she expected this at all but I actually think poor people SHOULD expect to get a fridge and an oven. Others think that they should be tanking their lucky stars for a damp cellar-room with rats. Different views I guess.

'But don't understand why they have to rip up the carpets?! If it's a hygiene issue surely there should be some sort of form we could sign to accept risks of keeping it?!
It's the timings thats stuffed us more.
Rent 6 days after viewing?!
Does that honestly not seem rushed to anyone else?'

It might not just be a hygiene issue, ours was riddled in fleas. Those can make you sick.

And no, I don't think it's rushed. Most areas have precious little housing and plenty on the waiting list, many in temp shelters who can't wait to get out. You didn't have to take it. You could decline.

Starting to sound quite goady, tbh.

wild The op hasn't fallen on hard times. She and her H work full time. And Bluntness didn't say anything that justified calling her a dick.

Op I agree no flooring is weird and I only recently learned this is standard in council properties. It needn't be new carpet - laminate flooring would last between tenancies one would have thought, but is ripped out and is expensive to fit. White goods could be bought more economically by the council presumably - they might be able to refurbish old ones - and their cost included in the rent. Have a look on local selling sites and post on local neighborhood forums. If you're lucky someone will be selling one or giving one away. There was a cooker and washing machine going free near us recently. Are there floorboards you can sand down? Is hard work but the cheapest option and looks good.

Free cycle/freegle is a good place for bits to get you going.

Some councils operate a deposit/rent scheme. It’s worth ringing your local council and asking.

Good luck.