Council refurb...am I expecting too much ?aibu?

[bringitbackks]

I leave in a two bed house which I rent from my local council.
Lived here 10 years and love it.
I decorated 6 months ago then received a letter saying I was getting a new kitchen plus rewire done.
So a month ago works started and it was going to take 10 working days.
So I pack everything away and box it up and protective flooring gets lay.
The first day nobody arrived ...the second day nobody arrived (after having a day by day itinerary ) nobody told me why or informed me they weren't coming.
They left me with holes in the walls with wires on show ,the kitchen hasn't been painted (painters were meant to be here two weeks ago)
The kitchen cupboard shelves have all collapsed as the brackets have snapped (I was told they were a dodgy batch )
Two weeks I have rang the site manager to be told "work will be finished tomorrow " and nobody turns up
Nobody now replies to my messages and the site manager doesn't answer the phone to
Me.
So like I say my kitchen isn't painted or floor put down,holes everywhere (even tho the plasterer has been three weeks ago -he missed these holes )
And now my shelves in the cupboards have collapsed.
Aibu to think this is disgrace?
The protective floor is covered in pieces of wall from the wire and also cement /plaster and god knows what else.
I can't get at any of my stuff as it's all boxed up
I honestly want to cry
If they would tell me when they are coming back to finish the work I wouldn't mind as much also no decorating vouchers that were promised

Some private landlords will literally not replace a kitchen unless it is not functioning and beyond repair. Certainly not on a rolling programme.
If its up to a private landlord to decide when a kitchen needs replacing you'd be surprised what they decide is adequate.
Some, not all. I have a very good landlord i must admit.
When they invest in their property they are investing not only in my satisfaction but its in their long term interest too, so it makes sense but not all LL see it that way.

I'm just really hoping it all gets finished next week and I can get my nice house back
Every room needs decorating
Ceilings/walls/skirting etc
It feels so overwhelming at the minute

I do think standards for what gets put in social housing has gone down. My mum’s bathroom was done 30 years ago and is still brilliant. 5 years ago it was due to be replaced and she refused as it was fine, and she’s really glad now as her neighbours have had endless problems with the new ones. The kitchen had to be done as a leak had caused some of the cupboards to rot, and the new one is nowhere near as good as the old one. Feels like a false economy as it means repairs are needed every few months, whereas the old one was fine for 15 years before the leak.

When I lived in an HA flat nearly everyone in the block had put their own kitchens in at their own expense after decades of grotty, insufficient, dated utility kitchens. When we were offered new ones through a housing stock upgrade everyone refused after seeing the state of the installations in a nearby block.

When my HA did my kitchen, I was allowed to chose the colour of the paint, the flooring, worktops and handles from a range that I was shown. The kitchen feels like mine and because every tenant was allowed that choice each kitchen is slightly different. The layout was completely changed as well as the old one was not designed for modern day living (not enough sockets, no room for a freezer etc). It will never be able to accommodate a tumble dryer or dishwasher (but I do have a fridge-freezer now which I bought), and the units are the kind you would get at B&Q at the lowest price range, but it's functional, looks better and I like it. I just hope the bathroom referb (which should have happened in 2020, no scheduled for next year), goes just as well.

That sounds mega frustrating, OP. I hope it gets sorted soon.

@Macaroni1924

It doesn’t matter who pays what for what or who the kitchen adds wealth to. The point is that someone said at least it’s free they didn’t say the service was acceptable. The op isn’t paying for the kitchen so it is free.

This is like saying that if your home insurance means something damaged is replaced, that replacement is 'free'. You seem either unwilling or unable to understand the concept of the costs of repairs being built into rent prices.

It's not a repair! It's a brand new kitchen! It is free because the cost of replacing bathrooms and kitchens is not built into my mortgage - nor is it built into rent. Rent is just rent - you pay to live there like how private renters do - the cost of replacing parts of your house isn't built into this rent - It's an option and choice of the landlord when something is really on its last legs. What irks most people with council tenants is the rent is so bloody tiny yet they still get new stuff for free and then moan and become entitled. (Not suggesting OP is like this but this is why it bothers folk who don't live in social housing) however, I'd rather not live in social housing and I'm happy owning my home and so I'm not fussed.

But it is free.

@wellhelloitsme it is free you can all argue all you want about it but it is free. You pay home insurance and you pay a premium for any claims. If you have read all my posts I don’t have an issue with it being done and believe the way it has been handled by them is unacceptable. I posted originally in support of someone who said at similar to this however stated at least it was free. Meaning at least OP hadn’t shelled out £5000 to be treated like shit. I am not the only one one this thread who believes it is free and someone who has worked in the finance department has also supported this as the money comes from grants.

It really isn't free I've paid rent on this home for over ten years they have not upgraded the kitchen which was falling apart and "due" for replacement when I moved in

Your like a dog with a bone with this any landlord would have to put in a new kitchen if needed, the difference with social housing is they have time scales, so for example a few years ago they upgraded all the roofs on the estate I live ,,with kitchens they will work out how long you would normally expect a kitchen to last and do them all at the same time as its easier and cheaper to do it that way
Social rent in many areas of the country is comparable to private rent .

🤣🤣you think a new kitchen in social housing is worth £5000,? they get the cheapest materials ,and again a new kitchen is just the bare cupboards sink and flooring nothing else .

IT'S NOT FUCKING FREE.

sorry for shouting but it's infuriating. I'm in a private rental rather than HA/council. But it works the same way.

I pay rent.
My landlord uses some of that to pay the mortgage on this house. He uses some as "his" money. And he puts some into a savings account. That savings account will be used to fit my new kitchen (hopefully). Therefore the money I have paid over the last 15 years is paying for it. Just like if I owned the house and saved some every month for future repairs/replacements.

I think some people are just trolling with the free shit.
I'm imagining them staying in hotels and taking home the free bed and bathroom

Obviously you shouldn't have to but order the brackets for the shelf from Amazon quite cheap and at least you can store things properly

But a new kitchen would add value to your home when it comes to selling it would it not? So it could be argued that you get back what you have paid out so therefore ultimately your kitchen would be "free" as well, just not at the point of purchase and fitting.

@Macaroni1924

You think they will have spent £5k on OP's kitchen? I can only assume you're completely ignorant to the reality of council tenancy.

Didn’t actually say it did though did I?

@x2boys

Ffs @wellhelloitsme it was a random figure. I don’t actually give two shits if they paid £20 the fact is that OP didn’t.
AMENDED
it is free you can all argue all you want about it but it is free. You pay home insurance and you pay a premium for any claims. If you have read all my posts I don’t have an issue with it being done and believe the way it has been handled by them is unacceptable. I posted originally in support of someone who said at similar to this however stated at least it was free. Meaning at least OP hadn’t shelled out £20 to be treated like shit. I am not the only one one this thread who believes it is free and someone who has worked in the finance department has also supported this as the money comes from grants.

<sigh> It's not free. I was told by my HA that the rent increase in the financial year following my kitchen referb would have an additional increase to the usual annual %rent rise due to having the work done. so once again IT'S NOT FREE!!!!!

The kitchen isn't finished in those 2 weeks and everything is a mess. Are you really sure that's what you want?

Any time there is a thread on CH/HA, the green monster comes out of certain posters. Why though? What triggers this jealousy/envious behaviour? Someone having a roof over their head triggers this behaviour?

I know someone that I am not even that close to that lives in an amazing C property in London with all modern fixtures (they earn well now and have done so much work on their home) and property is so well designed/huge storage etc; it is like a show home). I am happy for them as it’s such a basic human need to have a roof over your head.

The fact I rent privately and possibly pay more rent with a landlord has no bearing on any individuals/families living in CHs. It’s the worst thing and so insignificant to be green eyed about how people are housed. So many stereotypes of things being ‘free’ that even hard evidence of facts still won’t let those who are eaten up with envy consider anything else.

When you are triggered by such matters, it normally means there is something missing in your own life and you are projecting. Do something to change your own life for the better rather than looking down but still wanting the thing you look down on. It’s insanity.

BUT IT IS FREE! she's not had to purchase a new kitchen herself or pay for tradesman to come in & fit it in addition to plumbers, electricians, tilers, floorers, decorators etc all of which you would have to pay for if you are a homeowner which I am & which I have done recently!

However, despite the kitchen only being "cheap" she still has every right to expect the kitchen to be fit for purpose & to expect a decent job from tradespeople. If this is not the case then she needs to find out whom the head of works is & complain detailing the contact she's been attempting to make etc.

@Macaroni1924

Your ffs / sigh and all caps are ever so passive aggressive. It's a discussion forum. Chill out.

Life's nicer when you aren't oddly envious of people who are financially worse off than you having their homes made a little nicer.

Especially as the people who say they wish they could have a 'free' kitchen wouldn't be happy with the kind of kitchen the council would provide for council tenants.