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.

If the plaster is really that bad, it probably isn't finished

My parents installed every carpet we had in 80s. I didn’t even know fitting was available! Cheapest ones from carpet shop. We were middle class but they liked to save money for travelling.

Trust me with a A deep clean , some paint everywhere it’s will feel different ASAP

Also British Heart foundation have a lot of decent stuff

The sad benefit of living in such a consumerist wasteful society is that there are always bits and bats left over for the affluent folk , it’s just finding them

I don’t think you sound completely entitled as such, just really blinkered, like you think the only option is to buy new and to buy now? There’s so much good advice on here about how to get things cheaper, and how to cut costs in the first place. I think you should try to be more open to them.
You don’t need carpets in every single room from the word go, prioritise bedrooms and then do other rooms when you can afford it. Check on Facebook for second hand vinyl or laminate flooring, often v cheap.
Blinds are cheap from Dunelm or Ikea but second hand curtains are cheaper again!
Fence panels are cheap as, you can do that v easily, and you’ll just have to put some graft into sorting the garden out, like everyone else does!
It doesn’t matter if the plaster is rough (sure it wasn’t just the scratch coat?) just paint it cheap, and it’ll be a long term goal to replace.

When I moved in to my HA nearly 4 years ago we just had dusty concrete on the floors. Took me a few weeks to
Work up the courage to ask
Carpetright for credit. Which I got and meant a small monthly payment.

My eldest is autistic and shares a room. I am his anchor, not his curtains.

You’re really being ridiculous about plaster work.

Freecycle/gumtree/b&m and other cheap shops/auction (my kitchen was new and £200!)/facebook marketplace. I am absolutely useless at most practical things and I fit my own carpets in my last place. Borrow a knee kicker or buy one(mine was about a tenner) it won't be perfect but so what? Hire a cheap gardener (plenty of people are good at it but not professional and will clear it all for you). Can someone take the kids for a few days while you and DH take AL and do the basics?

You're wanting the best of the best stuff then of course it's going to cost loads. Your post has zero to do with council housing. It's just about moving house in general. That's it. We had no money when we moved house and bought blinds from blinds2go, laminate flooring from B&Q and a £300 cooker. And as for the huge mess of a garden? Well we put some gloves on and got stuck in. The house was un decorated too and we had £240 to do every single room. Simple plain wallpaper and a fuck ton of magnolia emulsion.

Over the years we have done it up but we still didn't NEED to have it decorated until we could afford it.

Also, I've lived in dozens of owned or privately rented houses in my life and ONE council house. I have never had a cooker supplied in any. Buying your own appliances isn't a council house thing.

We only just been able to afford proper made to measure blinds in our house. And still 2 of the bedrooms don't have them, just the cheapest blackout curtains b&m had - at £13 a pair. Go on local Facebook sites, people who change their decor practically give things away. Carpet the boys bedrooms by going to a local carpet shop and looking at their roll end offers - again we did both sons bedrooms with underlay and fitting for £250 so adding stairs and lounge wouldn't be too much more (does your own room NEED doing instantly)

Decorating doesn't need to be done anytime soon. Ask for home vouchers for Xmas from people - dunelm, the range, homebase. Make it an adventure with the kids, get them involved.

And, same as everyone else re local facebook groups, freecycle, ebay, gumtree, charity shops (British Heart Foundation does electrical goods and furniture).

I've given away blinds and curtains, bought and sold good quality cookers for

I think most people do it bit by bit when they own a property. Obviously council property is different as people don't own it but are like looking at long term rental. Also as you say people who rent a council property are on generally much lower incomes than people who buy. But then when we moved into our house we'd put so much into it we couldn't do things straight away.

I think your reluctantce to move into a half done property is not going to get a lot of sympathy feom others and sounds a bit ptincessy. But I get it as your son is autistic so there is likely to be additional pressure to not having a garden he can use.

Can you get a low interest loan or see if there's any help available from the council because of your circumstances? Or charities either financially or practically? There's a local group near me who do people's gardens.

@Niknick I think it’s your motherly instincts kicking in and that need to instantly provide them with what in your head is a safe and warm home.

Try to adjust your definition of what your children need. They have a clearly loving mum, a roof over their head, a cosy bed, clothes, an education. Most of the things you mention are far more important to you than they will be to them.

Just think of all those people (me included) who have money to buy but only for a fixer upper. My kids will have to share a bedroom. Those kids have exactly the same experience of moving into unfinished homes.

My kids survived and so will yours because they have us.

How am I entitled when I already know that the council won’t do things like carpets and decoration nor would I expect them to. I know that these things are mine and dh responsibility so I’m not exactly sulking that we won’t get these things done for free off the council. I’m just frustrated that the house needs so much work and I’m a bit overwhelmed about prioritising things that needs to be done. Ultimately I will be paying for everything myself so I can’t be entitled can I?

@Wakemeupwhenthisisover

I’m confused, why do you have to pay for the carpets/repairs/new oven? You’re renting you don’t own it, the council should pay for things like that. A private landlord wouldn’t make you pay for the upkeep of their property (unless you damaged it) so why would the council?

Councils don't pay for carpets or ovens, that's all on the tenant. They will do repairs but they're not always up to a high standard.

We bought a house last year after years of renting, the list of stuff that still needs fixing/buying/sorting is never-ending. It's a work in progress and will be for quite some time. I fully admit to being a snob and wanting the best but I've lowered my standards considerably and it's all ok.
OP I hope you're all very happy and settled in your new home.

Also, I've lived in dozens of owned or privately rented houses in my life and ONE council house. I have never had a cooker supplied in any. Buying your own appliances isn't a council house thing.

Yes, I grew up in a council house and never known an oven or white appliances to be supplied, why would they be? It seems some assume council house = everything on a plate, when it's a roof over heads. Plenty of places have free or cheap white goods second hand in a pinch though.

You usually don’t have to pay a months rent in advance as councils are usually weekly rent.

Councils have to take the house back to basics for health and safety, a previous tenant may have installed something dodgy or have fleas in the carpet.

I understand that you were disappointed when you viewed it but it will come together. My niece got a council house where the previous tenants were smokers, including the bedroom. The whole place looked grim including the overgrown garden etc.

Over the years she has had new double glazing and a new bathroom, full rewire and roof as part of councils improvement scheme. And she has the right to buy. Her rent is at least 25% less than the cheapest private rent.

No wonder council houses are demand.

When I moved into my first house it was new so no blinds, curtains or carpets. And little money left in the bank.

I borrowed what I could inc my bed, my mum gave me her 1970s swirly curtains, she gave me my bedroom drawers as she wanted to update my old room anyway.

I also know a family who have a box of old curtains. As each child moves into their first house, they borrow the box. Make use of the curtains until they can buy new. Put the old curtains back in the box ready for the next person to move house!

*If you think the plasterwork is so bad it needs doing again, tell the council, now! You say the workmen are still there. If it's really so bad, the council should refuse to sign it off and make them re-do it.

Look into what the council is obliged to provide you, what the terms of your contract and their obligations would be. Are they allowed to provide an unsafe house (the fence)?*

This.

Order your carpets on eBay. I ordered carpets from there for my kids rooms before I put the house on the market. Vinyl flooring is also 1/2 the price online too from eBay. I ordered that before and it's excellent quality.

Tins of paint in neutral colours are between £11-17 per tin and you could paint 2 rooms with each tin.

Facebook market place for handyman services for the fence to be fitted or for cheap fence panels.

It's all about where you look. Do a bit at a time.

We managed to buy 20 years ago but have never managed to afford carpets - we still have the carpet from the previous owners which desperately needs replacing, but we can't afford it. Curtains were, and still are, all hand-me-downs or charity shop. Couldn't dream of spending £500 for blinds! Furniture all secondhand apart from our dd's bed which we got from Ikea.

Would Lino be cheaper than carpet? Might be an option. My walls are far from smooth in the kitchen but it's fine, just don't go for brilliant whites which show up the imperfections. I had microwave and hob meals for the first 3 years of living in my house as the oven was rank. You just make do. I bought on my own so it was a slow process. Just got the bathroom done after 10 years 👍

Years ago when we bought our first home we just bought cheap plain nets for the windows and the cheapest possible cord carpets. We had green (!) carpet in the front room, everyone called it AstroTurf 😂
We didn't bother with underlay to save money, we used large cardboard boxes opened out and flattened instead.
Happy memories!!

We're currently renting while our family home is undergoing major renovations. We saved up like mad for a few years to get everything done at once but even that is taking us approx 6 or 7 months.

Check free cycle, gumtree, ask friends and relatives for free / low cost items that you need. Children won't notice if the walls need plastering etc, and do what you can when funds and time allow.

OP, you aren’t engaging with anyone trying to help you.

Charity shops have second hand curtains. Find a friend or relative with a sewing machine to alter them to fit.

The plaster doesn't matter. Freecycle is brilliant. Give your diy skills an airing to make rooms nice, you don't need wallpaper, try friezes or paint designs directly onto the walls yourself. Fences can be patched.

Getting into debt now with the economy as it is would be madness.

You go on Freecycle and look for old carpets or just buy cheap rugs or go to carpet places and look for end of rolls. You can get free ovens on Freecycle. As for the garden, you roll up your sleeves and get stuck in whilst your kids are playing outside with you. The fence should be your first priority. Again, ask on free cycle if anyone has any offcuts of wood or spare fence panels. If you can't afford brand new carpets, a new oven, a gardener and a plasterer, then you can't afford them. You'll find that most private home owners can't when they move into a new house, having paid solicitors fees, estate agents, council tax, utility connection charges, removal costs, stamp duty, mortgage fees etc. You can't expect to do it all at once at the start.