Declining townhouse layout?

[notintowoo]

Hello,

I have been on the council register list for about 12 years. It is just DD and I (12). Over the course of those years, we have viewed four properties. I declined two properties due to price and unsuitability and the other two properties I was outbid.

I recently received a call from the council to view a property, which was declined by the first person. I went to view the property and although the location is great (for work and DD travelling to school and not far from my parent's house) and the rent is quite decent. The townhouse layout is what is putting me off. It's a terrace conversion flat. I am on the first floor (a neighbour below but no one above me) but it has a townhouse sort of layout. I have my own entrance door, the hallway/entrance is on the ground floor, the bathroom is on the first floor. The kitchen and living room is on the second floor and the bedrooms are on the third floor.

Also, a friend recently told me that if I was to consider buying the property (which I wouldn't), it would be very difficult to sell as townhouses are unpopular.

I feel a bit disheartened to consider turning this down but I wanted to gather all of your thoughts before I speak to the council. What should I do?

Op - you clearly have decided you don't want it. Your finding more and more, increasingly weak, excuses for declining it. They are all easily worked round, but you clearly don't want to do that.

So decline it. Let it go to someone who IS actually desperate for a home.

And after 3 homes declined then you'll have to wait and see if they will even offer you anything more or if you'll drop to the bottom of the waiting list. Maybe in another 12 years you won't actually need to move anyway as dd will be an adult and have moved out 🤷‍♀️

Our council wouldn’t let you refuse on those grounds. We were decanted from a townhouse/maisonette to a house. I miss my townhouse, for the space and the size of the rooms.

It sounds like you’re making flimsy excuses so as not to take it, but this will be the 3rd you have refused, eventually you will lose your right to bid altogether

Are you with a private landlord? Lots of landlords are selling up ( my neighbour is ) I would consider the security of a council property.

Take the house or get off the list and let someone truly desperate take it.

Ridiculous set of excuses when so many people are struggling to even find a place to live or bidding way over the odds in private landlord roulette.

Assuming it’s less than £300/week for a 2 bed property then that’s a bargain in many parts of the country now.

TBH reading your posts about not wanting to buy it but worrying about resale value - are you already living in a council flat and therefore have accrued RTB? Because it reads like you’re viewing this as an opportunity to make money when your “perfect” property comes along.

Bored of this now. OP is clearly just playing with us

Most councils will only give you so many offers before they drop you to the bottom of the list again.
You need to take this flat or accept that you don’t really need scowl housing. Believe me, non of what you get offered will be perfect

It's been a wind them up and watch them go on a large scale hasn't it!

This! 12 years waiting and already turned down 2. She runs the risk of being removed from the council list if she keeps knocking back properties, and if not she may be waiting another 12 years.

Ah, I see you're just having a laugh then OP. I'm not sure where the interest factor lies for you, but I suppose we all find entertainment in different ways.

Given that you currently don't have a bedroom, why don't you give your DD the bigger room and you have the smaller one? If the smaller one can fit in z double bed, wardrobe and chair then it's not that small.

Having wasted time reading through the thread I totally agree with you!

The expression beggars can’t be choosers comes to mind! Ur child won’t have the luxury of a double bed? Diddums!!! Way too picky it’s pretty shocking to read actually.

This reads like a fake to make people angry about undeserving people being entitled to council properties.
Reminds me of a DM article about a woman living in a council flat in the heart of Soho, complaining about noise! 99% of people can't afford to live in central London even if they really wanted to.

First off, OP lives in what equals to a studio in her own words, but the "studio" has a large double bedroom and a living room? I guess she hasn't really seen a studio before.
Secondly, shouldn't council properties be for people who actually need them? OP is seeming choosing to reject perfectly fine housing. This does make me angry, I'm renting privately, our rent will go up soon and I'm scared of what the new amount will be. Yet people who have the luxury to reject perfectly good properties have a chance to snap up subsidised housing?

I don’t think I’d be so picky over stuff like that! If you’ve been on the list 12 years surely it’s important to get somewhere.

It wouldn’t bother me except I have once broken my knee and stairs became a huge issue. Ok that’s rare to do, but with all those stairs I would not want to live there in older life, fine for now, but maybe not one to stay in forever.

Carrying shopping up to the kitchen can be a pain, but location is key especially for your daughter at her age so all sounds fine to me, just be ready for gaining arm muscle and keeping you fit!

No this is not fake and nor did I write this post to get people angry.

Yes, I do live in a studio flat- well it has the style of one. Everything thing is open flat and our studio flat is generally small. The only good aspect of our current flat is the bedroom.

I know it may read that I am being picky. I genuinely want the next home that I live in to be our forever home but I know that this is unrealistic. I do tend to listen to the opinion of my friends/families who all had good/bad points to say in regard to accepting the flat.

I am genuinely grateful that I have been accepted the property and it ticks most of the boxes. But I do have a habit of being indecisive and deciding to move to a new property is a big thing for me.

In the meantime, I will have a proper think of what I should do. Overall, I think I am going to accept it as I think the space will be good for DD and ill be glad to have a room of my own. Thank you all for the contributions to my thread.

Why do your friends think the stairs are an accident waiting to happen, are they particularly steep or very little hallway/landing space?

Stop procrastinating and JFDI

You haven't mentioned a single "real" negative to this property.

You are throwing up barriers because you are scared of change but change can be positive and on this occasion the benefits of changing far outweigh the risks.

OP, it is good you are realising that the block is in your head, not in this property.

You could always give your Dd the bigger bedroom so that she still has too For her school work etc. you will have a room of your own, and the living room as your shared space will be a luxury!

This is such an opportunity!

Good luck!

This sort of attitude is such a disservice to people who are desperate for housing.

It's a big change, and that can be unsettling, but once you're moved in and settled you'll be so glad you did! It will feel completely different once the space feels like your home.

This is a good message, OP. I know change can be scary but if you accept this property I think you will be glad you did.

This sort of attitude is such a disservice to people who are desperate for housing.

Indeed, @Wheresthebeach I think it's clear the OP is not very well. But the pickiness is irritating.

I'm fortunate to earn enough to be a higher tax payer, and support my own housing choices by my work. I'm a nett contributor to our system in this way (never been on any kind of benefit and saving half my income for retirement & old age care). But reading about the kind of pickiness the OP expresses makes me less willing to hand over 40% of my income to support those less fortunate ...

It's not a good look.

Probably simply it’s not a house.

Not a negative. She's not in a house now, there is no house on offer, there almost certainly never will be.

The choice is overcrowded one bed flat with no privacy, with Mum sleeping in the open plan lounge/kitchen Vs lovely maisonette with a bedroom each that is separate from the living room and kitchen, and a secure tenancy.