To make a complaint to housing…waiting four months

[MaryJanif]

I live with my son and my parents. My son and I are desperate for our own place and are finding it impossible living with my parents. They’re overall quite toxic and we need to leave (won’t go into it on this thread). We also need to leave as I am married and my husband is an international doctor. He cannot move to or start work in the U.K. until we have appropriate accommodation. So for now we’re separated and it’s very upsetting for both of us. On the 22nd June I applied for an ‘intermediate rental property’. The property is run by a local housing association.
Basically a council flat but for working people and you have to have a minimum income of 35k a year for this particular property.

The advert closed a few days later and I was asked to submit documentation which I did.
On July 1st I was unsure as to why I hadn’t been contacted so chased up.
Was approved for the flat the next week but no setting up of me seeing the flat.

I guess at this point something was wrong.
I then got contacted by a lettings assistant saying there had been a delay and the flat might not be reading until end of august. I was shocked. They offered me another property which I accepted. For some reason she then said she needs to check that’s allowed.
I noticed the next day the properties had gone out for advert so I was confused.
I then got a message saying the builders had promised the work would be done no later than first week of September.

I was a bit annoyed as this was a long wait but I felt helpless.
Before the first week of September I was told the work was not done after all and on two weeks it should be completed but that they would be in touch to keep me updated.
Two weeks went and gone so I chased up to be told they were expecting an update from the builder on Monday (this was two weeks ago) and they would be in touch. I’ve heard nothing.
I’ve managed to stay strong for months now but I don’t know what to do.
I’m so stressed and just feel helpless.
I have no idea when the tenancy will be offered to me, what’s going on.

The property should never have been advertised as ready to let in mid July if it wasn’t. It shouldn’t have been advertised at all when it was months from being habitable.
I have a named worker with the housing association but she is an admin assistant so I don’t think she really knows what’s going on either.
I don’t know what to do. AIBU to complain?
I am really anxious if I complain they will somehow take the property off us but surely we can’t be kept in limbo.
As my husband works abroad in a very poor country and I work just three days a week we have really considered the option of private renting but I have a poor credit rating, couldn’t afford it and even when we did apply we’re never chosen as I currently get universal credit to help with rent payments. The private renting options are horrendous in my local area with huge demand I stand no chance.
i honestly hate complaining but feel I have no choice at this point.

If your husband is a doctor why on earth are you not paying for a private rental?

there are many in desperate need for housing who don’t have parents able to house them 🙄🙄🙄

Sorry that should be minimum income of 25k a year. Not 35k.
35k a year would be lovely! 😂
I earn 25k a year. I support my husband abroad with this as well. So money is tight.

It’s a misconception that all doctors are rich. When my husband moved to the U.K. he will be in around 32k a year. He is currently living abroad in one of the poorest countries in the world, is not allowed enter the U.K. until we have appropriate accommodation and earns the equivalent of £500 a month! 😂
However even if he was a Doctor in the U.K. this isn’t social housing in the way you’re thinking.
they’re flats specially for working people and you have to earn at least 25k a year to get one and can earn upto 45k and still be eligible.
In the U.K. private renting is so expensive and In-demand that middle earners can’t afford to rent and so they realised this and set up this scheme to help those people.
Social housing isn’t just for those on benefits.

This makes no sense, surely your husband can come here -assume he has job lined up if he is a doctor - then you can immediately apply for rental properties.

What do you mean by 'he's an international doctor?'

Sorry, but doctors in UK shouldn't be needing a Housing Association property, ordinarily?!

Ah... so your husband is not a UK National?

So you're sending money overseas to your husband but you think you should get social housing in this country?

Also finally when my husband does enter the U.K. he won’t be able to work as a Doctor until he completes some exams which make him eligible to work in the U.K. They can take between 1-2 years to complete.

Nope 😊

Why isn’t it considered appropriate accommodation for him to just move in with your parents?

Then he starts work and you have a £57K household income between you. He can work anywhere, so don’t choose central London 🤷🏻‍♀️

Yes. I’m eligible for the property and wouldn’t be able to secure private rent irrespective of whether I send money or not.
I only send around £100 a month.
with or without that £100 private rent wouldn’t be an option

My parents home is not big enough to count as appropriate accommodation.
he can’t work as a doctor in the U.K. until he’s passed his exams which will take around two years.
So while he can find work once here it won’t be a good salary job.

Then move to a low rent area in the north (they do exist!) and privately rent with him working in whatever job whilst he qualifies in the U.K.

How old is your son? You might need to declare yourself homeless to get anywhere. Is you moving to where he is an option?

Immigration require you not to be living with your parents? I didn’t know that.

So he's not a qualified international doctor?

maybe before people comment further they should look up ‘intermediate rent’ and see what it’s about as it’s for professionals and in some areas you need to earn between 45-60k a year just to be eligible.
I think people are misunderstanding what it is.
id not consider it ‘social housing’.

This post is really odd.

We have a shortage of doctors so if your husband is qualified he should be able to get a visa to work for the NHS.

Someone on a doctor's salary can afford to rent privately.

I am also not quite sure why you are in the country when he isn't or why you are applying for social housing.

Yes he’s working in his home country as a doctor now but to work in the U.K. he needs to take two extra exams.

If you are eligible for the property when earning between 25k and 45k, what happens when your dh moves here and you have a combined salary above 45k?

Why are you sending him money abroad? How did he fund himself in his own country before you and he married?

The OP has said she only earns £25K pa. I doubt her husband, who doesn’t live in the UK, doesn’t have a job in the UK, and would need to retrain for a couple of years in order to practice medicine in the UK can be included in the income calculation.

If he's got a job offer in the nhs it normally comes with accommodation. He could stay in nhs accommodation until you get a house sorted.
Or he could stay with your parents as long as you're not classed as overcrowded. The home office allow living and dining rooms to be used as bedrooms. Lots of families applying for spouse visas do this.

I’m not sure complaining is going to do much good. Stuff happens in housing, work doesn’t always get done in time.

as I understand you, you are living with your parents, so you are not homeless even if you don’t like them much. You want the housing association to provide subsided housing so that your husband who is not a UK citizen or currently ( I think from what you have said) with right to remain in the UK, and who does not have academic qualifications which would enable him to meet the earnings threshold.
If I was you, I’d just hang on and hope the HA gets the flat finished.

If he jumps through the appropriate hoops and secures a job here the NHS will pay for visas and accommodation etc for him, you can then look to rent. Currently you have a home albeit one you're not happy in and he doesn't have the necessary qualifications yet to work here as a doctor- so not sure what your complaint would be?

The OPs DH doesn't have a job in the NHS as he's not qualified to work in the UK.

OP I guess whether to have a complaint to make depends on what you were advised would happen once you'd signed up for the flat. Do you have paperwork guaranteeing that it's yours? We we sadly know it it extremely difficult to access social housing so you will be one of many waiting to be housed, sadly.