Offer of a council house does this seem fair?

[SuzieX]

Hi. I’m newly registered but not new to Mumsnet as I’ve been reading through the forums for a while. I’m wanting peoples opinions on this matter as I’m not at all happy with the way my local council allocate their homes and don’t think it is at all fair. My set up is i’m married with two children. A dd age 14 and da age 6. We have been in private rented accommodation since we first moved out of parents 17 years ago. Long story but the top and bottom of it is the house prices here are way out of our league and even if we had saved a set amount each month since we first got together we still wouldn’t have a big enough deposit.

So a few years ago, I think 2012 we registered with our local council for housing. We were told we could register but wouldn’t be a priority as we had a roof over our heads. Fair enough, and so we expected to be waiting a long time. Six years later we still aren’t a priority but are moving up the list so again that’s fine. What’s not fine is that a friend of mine (I say friend but we hardly see each other anymore) who owns her own house has recently been given and moved into a council property.

Her and her partner bought a house a few years ago. They have three children and out of the blue they announced that they were separating and following this her partner moved out. She went to the council and got put into band 2, the second highest priority (we are band 4) and within two months she was offered a house. I’ll be completely honest with you and admit I’m at a loss as to how she got this house and I’m pretty pissed off with the fact she moved in and then within a week the father of her three kids also moved in despite her telling everyone that they had separated. The house that they own they have now got a tenant living there so they are getting their mortgage paid on the house they own whilst living in a heavily discounted council property. Aibu or is this completely unfair?

Like I said we have been in private rented for years and whilst I agree we aren’t a priority compared to people who are homeless or about to be homeless but our ds is registered disabled. He has Asd, adhd and PDA and has a lot of issues and living in private rented accommodation doesn’t help. For example we need to fit locks to the bathroom and kitchen doors due to safety but our landlord won’t allow us to do this. We need locks to the windows as he’s tried to climb out on more than one occasion but again our landlord won’t allow this. We need a bathroom with a low level access shower (wet room) as our son can’t tolerate the bath and hates water but somehow he copes better in a shower but won’t get in the bath to use the shower.

With this issues our son has and the supporting evidence we got from the occupational therapist and paediatrician we were told by the council they couldn’t move us into a higher band as our son doesn’t have any physical disabilities. So why oh why can a person who has no need whatsoever, or her children, get a house when she already owns a house of her own?

I can afford my mortgage but would like to live in a cheaper subsidised house.. After all I work and pay taxes

In what way are they subsidised out of interest that means anything to you as a taxpayer? Always baffles me when people come out with shit like that.

I’ve not once said that I deserve a council house. But then why does anyone deserve one. No one has an automatic right to council housing and I accept that. How do you know I can afford my rent? I mean yes it gets paid every month but we pay through the nose and some months we really struggle, yes like a lot of other people I know. I’ve not said I think I’m more deserving than anyone. My post was about my friend getting a Home when she already owns her own. I just explained my own circumstances for reference. If I owned my own my own house I would still think it was unfair someone who already owns their own home to get given a house with the council.

Every housing register application I have ever seen includes a question along the lines of "Do you own any property, in the UK or abroad?" If the answer to that is "yes", they tell you to go and live in it! In exceptional circumstances, eg domestic violence, extreme disrepair or the property not meeting disability needs and not adaptable, then you might qualify for social housing.

I rather suspect that this woman has told a big fat lie. And people have been prosecuted for this.

Why does anyone need a house? That’s a bit of a silly question isn’t it. I “need” a more permanent suitable home as we live in a two bedroomed house as there are no affordable three beds in my area. My son cannot share with his sister so me and my dh sleep downstairs. We don’t have a separate dining room so can’t have a proper bed and therefore sleep on a sofa bed. Now before anyone asks why didn’t I mention this earlier, why should I need to? My post was about my friend. Yes, I briefly explained my own circumstances but i’m not playing the pitty game. Our circumstances aren’t ideal but we manage and for the millionth time I’m not saying we are more deserving of a council house than other people. What I am saying however is that we are certainly more deserving than a person who already owns their own home and has no medical/social need.

This is exactly what I have been thinking LakieLady.

I do not have a council house but I know from a friend when I lived in the UK, if you have an 11month lease rather than a 12 month, You are concidered homeless and put on band 2.

You would have to receiving HB. You also cannot own any property here or abroad.

Report them.

Report them.

x-post, but it bears repeating!

A family member of mine went to the council and said her husband was beating her (they split short term over other things). She was given a council flat.

He never hit her, he didn't even know she'd told them that. She then waited until her son turned 18 and put her son as a joint tenant and then moved back home.

I'm suspecting she said domestic violence tbh, if she owns the other house that will probably still get her rehoused, in my area if you have a property but its not "reasonable for you to remain there" they will rehouse you.

She will have lied to get it, by claiming to be 'homeless'. I'd report her. If you want to make it stick, take photos of her DH coming and going.

It sounds like your friend is committing fraud. I don’t usually agree with reporting, but I would in this case.

The advice about being homeless if you have an 11 month lease is wrong BTW.

I was ‘homeless’ with my kids and got a house (eventually) because we’d been served a section 21 notice and were being evicted. We did not count as homeless until 28 days before that ran out (it’s now 56). Even then it was another 3 months...we were lucky that our first section 21 was done incorrectly so he had to do it all over again.

You need to write to the local authority and explain that you think their tenants have been untruthful in order to receive unfair precedence on the housing register. Explain what you have been told. Your circumstances don't really come into the equation , but if the tenant has not been truthful in the details of her application then she can be prosecuted and lose the tenancy. Please be factual and don't descend into a general rant about the unfairness of it all. I am a former housing officer for a local authority and we did investigate if we were given information, but I would suggest that it is not done anonymously .

And we did do wet rooms and adaptations.

Sounds as if she was swinging lead...

It doesn't matter subsidised or not... Botoom line it costs far less to live in a council property...

The average council rent is 89£ weekly I think.... I pay 800 for a one bed very ordinary flat

Thanks for all your advice. Not sure what to do really if anything. I don’t want her kids out on the streets as they wouldn’t just be able to move back into the house they own, not with a tenant in anyway. I’m honestly like I’ve already said, not making out I’m more deserving of a council house that other people. But then at the same time it’s not fair people manipulate the system.

Her children would not be on the streets, the local authority would assist in finding accommodation for the tenants in the family home. If you know they're cheating then please contact the local authority.

Its really not fair op hope something comes up for you soon x

A crap situation with people fighting over crumbs as MimpiDreams says, is only made worse ten times worse by people with the brass neck to scam the system.. and its more abhorrent as it literally takes homes away from people in genuine serious need. Homelessness or genuine threat of it, is a truly terrible state to have to endure and it means that you are at the very bottom of society already, hanging onto its dog-shit covered coat-tails.

If you definitely know facts then you could/ should report, if all people have is guesswork and speculation then they should leave it alone (as with the report to HMRC thread).

Sometimes things are not as they appear, but also some people cheat blantantly and have no shame. In that case I think they have it coming... and since I don't believe in heaven or hell, (and that would be too late for the other family they displaced) cheaters should get what's coming now.

Please report. The system is overstretched as it is and theyve committed fraud. To be frank, they bloody deserve to get caught.

Its no use having a moan and not doing something that you definately can do to fix it in my view. Call them out

And do you bid on properties on the housing list each and every week?

Phone the housing department at your local council and report them. This is blatant dishonesty.

Every housing register application I have ever seen includes a question along the lines of "Do you own any property, in the UK or abroad?" If the answer to that is "yes", they tell you to go and live in it! In exceptional circumstances, eg domestic violence, extreme disrepair or the property not meeting disability needs and not adaptable, then you might qualify for social housing.

This is interesting to me. I live in a Housing Association property and one of my neighbours owns a property they are doing up in their native country. When they were given the HA property their situation was different and they were in need, but years later this person is basically living here, working here so yes paying taxes, but basically saving money also so they can go live in the property overseas at a time of their choosing.

This is unreasonable, isn’t it?