Company accom: Family in flat vs couple in house

[HotCrunchyCrumpet]

Company provide accommodation with the job. There is a wide variety in terms of quality and nearly all are flats, only very few houses. Company changed policy a few years ago that houses should go to families based on occupancy.

Couple in house prior to policy change is being asked to move to a two bed flat as they’re currently in a six bed house with garden so that a family can move in. Would you move if you were in the house?

Morally I get why it's right, but I'd be disappointed tbh, especially if I'd lived there a long time and had spend money on decor etc.

Is there an element of heira

If the house is owned by the employer and the type of home provided isn't specified in the contract, then I don't think you'd have a choice - you'd presumably have to move or be sacked.

Would the six-bed house be a vicarage, by any chance?

Selfish not to if the property is needed back. It’s one of the pitfalls of living in accommodation provided by your employer. Sorry you have to move x

ETA: I don’t mean to sound unsympathetic. I went through something similar after being in ‘my home’ for over a decade. It’s a life lesson.

How linked is the job to the property? Physically?

@Allenetall not allowed to decorate or change anything etc.

@Pampledample used be based on hierarchy but now includes elements like length of service/children as well as rank.

@KreedKafer it is owned and no stipulation as to what you get, not a vicarage no.

I'd probably accept it but be disappointed in the reduction in my own living standards, which might make me re-evaluate how happy I was with the overall setup and compensation. I'd want the company to cover moving costs and give a day or two paid extra leave for sorting the move.

If there's a wide variety in quality they need clear guidelines on how housing is allocated, as that's potentially a huge part of staff's overall compensation.

@DoreenonTill8 no not physically just in the vicinity of workplace

Oh are you talking military re rank? Well generally the OC would have the biggest house where a new 2lt even with a family wouldn't get to kick them out!
If you are talking military you don't have to live on the patch do you?

@DoreenonTill8 sorry shouldn’t have said rank there! Higher position shall we say

Turn it in its head. Would u think it was fair if u needed more space and ground out two people were in a 6 bedroom house?

I don't think I'd be too happy to move out if I'd already been allocated and was living in the property (regardless of size!).

The company needs to acquire more houses to go with the new policy change imo - rather than moving around people already living in the properties.

I can't imagine it would be a selling point of the company to have the knowledge that when working for them you could be told to move out of your home at any time if someone new suited it better! Like musical chairs!

I think it would be unreasonable to stay in the larger accommodation if it was not required. I guess precedence has also been set by Tony Blair and David Cameron living above Number 11 (typically the Chancellor’s house) in the bigger apartment, than above Number 10 the typical PM’s house.

It sounds similar to the proposed changes to Military accommodation that lots of people complained about!

On one hand... is it clear that the property could be reclaimed at any time, or was given to them on the understanding its theirs as long as they want?

But... its pretty selfish to underoccupy of others need it more.

(We actually had similar in the Army... on paper we had adequate accommodation as it was a 3 bed house, and we had 2 children. But that particular type of house had been informally listed as unsuitable for young children due to its layout and size. Meanwhile couples had the large 3 and 4 bed houses... and they couldn't force them to give them up)

I think it's reasonable to move if there's a family that needs a larger property. They've benefited from 'better' than the policy for some time now, plus their bills should decrease substantially so it's not all bad.

Does it ever arise that people don't want to live in company accommodation or it's genuinely unsuitable? What happens then? Do people pay the full cost of alternative accommodation, or do they get a cash alternative to spend on a private rental of their choice?

I was interested in views as we’re the family in this situation and have been told we can’t move as the couple are refusing to. I can understand why they don’t want to move but I can’t help feel it’s unjust.

It’s only fair that a family home goes to a family but that’s quite a disparity-6 bed home Vs 2 bed apartment

No. I wouldn't
They have probably filled and use the space. It is their home
Especially if the children of the other family have came post occupancy

@Bjorkdidit nearly everyone has to have company accommodation. Only a few get cash equivalent and it’s dead man’s shoes

I’d move. I’d feel like an absolute twat occupying so much space while a family has to live somewhere too small for them.

I absolutely would. Who wants to clean all those un-required rooms? I moved from a 3 bedroom two story house with a large kitchen and a large living room, to a 2 bedroom flat with a shared kitchen/living room. It's so much less hassle. Cleaning takes well under half the time.

Do you need a 6 bed? Who initially suggested that the couple should move - your family or the company?

Edited to add: If you don't need all of the bedrooms, would you happily vacate to a smaller house, or back to a flat after 3 years if a larger family needed it?

If I accepted the job based upon the original housing offer, I would not accept a downgrade in housing.

My old employer went through a similar change. From being based on hierarchy only to being based on only family size plus need to formally entertain for work purposes. Caused no end of uproar. Lots of threats to leave but very few followed through.

Yes, of course they morally need to leave the big house. Yes, it’s difficult for them, but who the hell do they think they are to force a family to live in two bedrooms when they have six? Work provided accommodation comes with limited choice, that’s what happens when you choose that life. Whether or not they can be forced will depend on contracts.