To wonder how people actually afford to move into council properties

[Niknick]

So, me and my dh have been offered a house with our local council after years of being on the waiting list. We have two son’s youngest of whom is autistic and we have been offered 3 bed meaning we’d all have our own bedroom at last. I haven’t had an official viewing of the house yet ie with the hosing officer but workmen are currently doing some repairs and they allowed me and my dh in the other day to have a quick look round whilst they were sat in the garden on a break.

Anyway i went equipped with my tape measure to measure up for carpeta, blinds and just to get a general idea of how things will fit. I’ve since gone to a cheap carpet place and been quoted £1500. Blinds will cost around £450-£500. Then there are things like decoration, removal costs, buying a new oven as our current one our landlord owns etc. The property isn’t in great condition and having viewed another of the council’s houses years back me and my dh are under no illusion that the council will do anymore than the bare minimum.

So far it needs plaster work doing as the workmen have done a rubbish job. It needs scrubbing beyond recognition, the garden is like a jungle so that will be more cost as we’ll need to pay someone to do it as me and my dh are busy with work and the kids. Plus parts of the fences are smashed and need replacing as it’s not safe with my son. I know it’s the tenants responsibility to do a lot of these jobs but usually, people moving into these properties aren’t well off so AIBU to wonder how do people manage to do all this? We have virtually zero savings due to paying high private rent, so long term moving to this house would be financially a good idea, but short term I’m panicking about where the hell we find the kind of money we are going to need to make this house at least comfortable for us all to live in. Moving to my current house paying a months rent up front plus deposit and referencing check fees is cheaper than what we’ll have to spend to move to the new house so I’m quietly panicking.

You generally don't get it for life, you get it on a 5 or 10 year tenancy?

Every council house I have placed a bid on has stated NO to pets?

This is very incorrect. My oh works in the industry and what is sold to the Council is not too.of the range but very close.

These all depend on the council.

Ours does a probationary tenancy for the first twelve months then once you've proved you're a good tenant you get a secure tenancy which is a lifetime tenancy.

For some properties you have to prove you have a tie to that particular parish in order to bid on those properties.

Pets are allowed, two dogs or two cats or any combination of such. Small pets are not counted. No livestock is allowed without permission.

Fixtures and fittings are basic but serviceable and you can replace them with your own if you want so long as you get permission first. You can also do home improvements so long as you get permission, we got permission to incorporate the outhouse into the main house so that we could fit a utility room and second toilet and to extend one of the bedrooms, we partially funded it ourselves along with a grant from the council as some of the work was classed as disability adaptation.

In the area where we live the waiting list is not massive, we were on it less than six months, and it is private renting that had the shortage especially family homes as the private rents available tend to be one bed flats. The majority of people I know living in council housing here are working.

Having lived in council properties myself (and indeed now owning an ex council house), I can assure you I have no inherent prejudice towards council tenants :)

However anyone insisting on new carpets and curtains as a prerequisite, or a new kitchen or bathroom, or stating a 1950s door frame or door needs replacing (for what sounds like a maintenance issue) ends up sounding rather entitled.

Femalediycollective on IG and YouTube are showing women how to DIY on a budget, so you don't have to pay tradesmen. They started out of frustration of being overcharged/shoddy workmanship.

Definitely worth a look to see how you can save £££ and make your money stretch further.

@greengreengrass14 - housing associations are essentially charitable rather than social enterprises (which are usually businesses - housing associations are a specific type of organization). They are at least partially funded by grants from the government - every year the government pays out billions In grants to them to provide housing (in addition to housing benefit etc). I’m not saying that’s wrong, I don’t think it is, but let’s get our facts straight. They are publicly funded so should be accountable accordingly.

It does annoy me that councils and housing associations demand that perfectly good flooring etc be ripped up. It’s a massive waste and does no one any good. They should absolutely be providing basic flooring or leaving the flooring that was there before. Private landlords can manage it so no reason councils can’t.

However anyone insisting on new carpets and curtains as a prerequisite, or a new kitchen or bathroom, or stating a 1950s door frame or door needs replacing (for what sounds like a maintenance issue) ends up sounding rather entitled.

I haven't insisted on any of those things, they've all been instigated by the council as part of the regular replace and refresh of their housing stock. The doors are getting past the point of repair and if the landlord (the council) want to change them then they can change them.

@Sciencebabe, it's not as simple as that when I moved into my council house my garden had very low fencing about two foot ,my child has severe autism and severe learning disabilities, the council refused to replace the fencing and we could never let him out in the garden on his own as he just was,nt safe ,they only replaced the fencing when I asked for an OT assessment and they put it down as an urgent need ,and it took ten months from the assessment ,to them finally putting up up six foot fencing ,we were in the house for four years before my son had an OT assessment.

Blinds are £5 at IKEA. You can get carpets or laminate and lino for much much less than you are saying, like £500 for the whole house done in corduroy drill. You can get furniture off freecycle or ebay - usually can find beds for £1 on ebay, dining table for £10. You buy better stuff bit by bit.

Dunelm is really good these days. It's upped its game massively.

Surely the issue with flooring being left is that a particular tenant won't know the property they are getting until after the previous tenant moves out? Therefore the new tenant couldn't see or check it beforehand in order to sign a waiver.

So you could end up with Tenant A moves out, deciding they will leave their lovely flooring behind to help the next occupant.

Except when the new tenant B views the property they notice it's stained or damaged, fitted only up to a wardrobe since removed, a carpet infested with fleas, or unsuitable due to allergies (especially if A had pets). So then the council/ HA have the additional cost of removing it. Now you could argue that in most cases people would be happy with the flooring that had been left...experience tells me that wouldn't be true.

Restricted tenancies seem to be more HA don't they? I have a lifetime tenancy in my home which is good as DS might always have to call it home. I'm in a HA place and had an initial 12 months tenancy to make sure I was a good tenant. I am 😁...pay my rent on time etc.

My niece though has a five year tenancy in her HA flat after which they will reassess her situation. If she's earning much more by that time she will have to leave. In fact she's doing well and the likelihood is that she will be able to buy her own place before the five years are up.

Social housing is hit and miss with regards to what you get. If you're lucky the previous tenant looked after it.

If you're unlucky (like me) then the previous tenant left graffitti over the walls, holes in the walls, no carpets and rubbish throughout the garden. They might also have bypassed the electricity meter and grown cannibis in one of the bedrooms, the garden and the loft. She was 22 and had no appreciation for the lovely home she'd even given and ended up being evicted.

Bloody nightmare getting this house back to normal and I was given just £100 worth of vouchers towards it.

It paid for some polyfilla and paint .

You sound extremely ungrateful. Honestly what did you expect? If it's not suitable for you decline it & carry on private renting. Honestly cannot understand people who wait years for a house then complain about every single thing. You are lucky to have a garden for your kids to play in - I get its frustrating thinking about how much needs done but seriously - make a plan instead of complaining. You have years to get it the way you want. There are people still waiting in appalling conditions who would be over the moon to be offered a home like that. And yes you need to do work but don't forget - you wont have to replace the boiler, any leaks/repairs the council attend to - so you're already a lot better off than some people.

@willitbetonight

I'm busy with work and the kids and do my own garden. I lived with unfitted black carpet that cost about £70 for 2 years whilst we saved up for the flooring we wanted. I own my own home. Get over yourself.

Unfitted carpets in some rooms is a good temporary solution..maybe prioritise getting a fitted carpet in just your DCs rooms. When I moved into my house the dining room had a wooden floor with gaps big enough to put a hand in in places...I just got a cheap rug from eBay...the pattern is hideous but it stops the drafts until I can get the floor done, plus it’s an advantage having temporary floor coverings while you’re decorating anyway.

Lord this thread is nasty

She works
She pays tax
She looks after her disabled kids
She waited ten years

People get stressed and anxious . That’s LIFE

@dontdisturbmenow

They renew kitchens and bathrooms every ten years And this becomes something seen as a due rather than a luxury. I do not know home owner who buy new kitchens and bathrooms every ten years. Our kitchen and one bathroom are 11 years old and nowhere needing to be renewed. The other bathroom is 20 years old and probably needs it now as do our 20 years old carpets. We earn a very good joint income but no way would be consider new kitchen, bathrooms and carpets every 10 years anything else but utter luxury.

They replace them as often as that because they install the cheapest available and they’re knackered after ten years. You get what you pay for. There are definitely homeowners who replace substantially more expensive kitchens as often as this because fashion has changed.

I would check which fence is yours which is the neighbours for the time being make a small area near to the house safe & put temporary barrier up to keep your son out of the rest
& as others have said ask council to redo fence as its unsafe -
when we moved in we bought cheapest carpet for living room bathroom & dc bedroom - you can get old fashioned runner carpets for hall & even stairs (stair rods!!) & paint cement floors white. Paint plaster regardless or use good old (shudders is it still available?) textured wallpaper - you can paint (wilko is your friend or B & M homebrands or whatever) cement floor. your bedroom you can get big rugs from Wilko or Ikea.

A bathroom suite is a bathroom suite, a cheap one is perfectly serviceable and should last for 20 years. Arguably modern baths stay in good condition longer than the old cast iron ones where the enamel would wear off/ they'd rust.

It might not look modern or fashionable, but that's a different question.

I would also look for local organisations that can help with furniture and white goods - we have one called helping hands local to me. They do second hand furniture that will do you till new stuff or stuff more to your taste can be sorted. You also speak to the council ask who they now can help, you ask people you know for things, scour facebay and gumtree and similar. Use old fashioned nets till you can sort new curtains and blinds, source a sewing machine and make your own. Its not always go shopping that is the answer, homes are built over time.

Critical - beds and matresses and bedding
Cooker
Fridge
Kettle and toaster

then
Sofa
TV

then table and chairs for dinner

I don't believe social housing should be for life - I think the 5 yr review is excellent news and stops people blocking housing release as "they're all right jack" sod anyone else behind them in the queue despite having now gone up in the world in terms of income etc

It can take a while to adjust from private rent to council which is more like owning a house. You do DIY in evenings and weekends. You get some tools and learn to trim and put up blinds from ikea or Dunelm. You make do with carpet remnants and look for second-hand appliances. If you buy a scruffy house its the same. It took us several years to get our first house to a point where any tenant would call it liveable. Congrats its the trade off for permanence and it's worth it in the long run.

@jojobar

A bathroom suite is a bathroom suite, a cheap one is perfectly serviceable and should last for 20 years. Arguably modern baths stay in good condition longer than the old cast iron ones where the enamel would wear off/ they'd rust.

It might not look modern or fashionable, but that's a different question.

You’re right but the same isn’t true of kitchens.

Regarding the fence, if there is an issue of the child's safety, would it be possible to put an improvised barrier all around? If you know a builder, or a neighbourhood friend's website, maybe you could post pictures and get advice. You know what the child can or cannot get through, and what the existing fence is like. I've seen all sorts of temporary fixes, with scraps of chain link or chicken wire or some metal poles driven into the ground with scaffold net secured by cable ties.

*It's one thing that makes me really upset with council housing.

The bloody waste of ripping out everything*

To be fair to our local council (which I'm not, usually, because I have a bee in my bonnet about paying the 5th highest council tax in the country and getting pisspoor services) some housing officers seem happy to leave stuff if it's clean and in good nick. I've had clients get lucky and get a place with some carpets or laminate left, fitted wardrobes and even curtains/blinds in one case.

But even that can cause problems, when another prospective tenant gets offered a place and kicks off because the place she's been offered hasn't got any of the stuff that her cousin's friend's neighbour's auntie got for free. And they are very selective. One family kept their flat in a vile condition, it was grubby, there were holes punched in some of the doors, they were very heavy smokers and it stank, the carpets were so grotty your shoes stuck to them and the bath and toilet defied description. The smell of piss hit you as soon as they opened the door.

It was so bad that some workers refused to do home visits, and I never sat down in there and always made them my last call of the day so I could go straight home and get in the shower.

They moaned like mad about having to take up their carpets and dispose of them when they moved out.

P.s. Are carpets a good choice? For a house with pets and children, or even with humans, a wipe-clean floor seems sense

This is what I used as temporary fencing

www.zoro.co.uk/shop/site-safety/flexible-fencing/hi-vis-orange-fencing-1mx50m/p/ZT1184760X?utm_source=google&utm_campaign=pla%2B%7C%2BSite%20Safety&utm_term=ZT1184760X&utm_medium=pla_css_3&mkwid=-dc&pcrid=314501975971&pkw=&pmt=&prodid=ZT1184760X&slid=&pgrid={groupid}&ptaid=pla-461709130540&gclid=Cj0KCQjwqfz6BRD8ARIsAIXQCf0lDyqN0B9vaNP0qkX_Nf_hkclw3gp3DYAe31cQN6Voyc0z3Tg74_gaAh80EALw_wcB

I used tent pegs along the bottom, too, to stop wriggly terriers from getting underneath. I think they sell it in Screwfix. Cheap as chips and it would do for now.

Sorry, that link went awry.

www.zoro.co.uk/shop/site-safety/flexible-fencing/hi-vis-orange-fencing-1mx50m/p/ZT1184760X?utm_source=google&utm_campaign=pla%2B%7C%2BSite%20Safety&utm_term=ZT1184760X&utm_medium=pla_css_3&mkwid=-dc&pcrid=314501975971&pkw=&pmt=&prodid=ZT1184760X&slid=&pgrid={groupid}&ptaid=pla-461709130540&gclid=Cj0KCQjwqfz6BRD8ARIsAIXQCf0lDyqN0B9vaNP0qkX_Nf_hkclw3gp3DYAe31cQN6Voyc0z3Tg74_gaAh80EALw_wcB

Social housing kitchens are usually selected to be both cheap and robust, from trade/contract ranges. Ideally. So they might not be latest trend or have fancy features but should be solid underneath. But the wear and tear can be very high