Is there a difference between social housing & private properties?

[halloweenbunnyy]

I was just wondering what people's experience with social housing as we giving up our council house.

This was the first social housing property that we lived in having always privately rented.
Previously never had any issues with any neighbours and were pretty much left alone which we prefer anyway and it was brilliant.

Moving into this house has caused us nothing but headache.

We are woken up at 6am everyday including weekends by all the school age kids playing on their bikes etc before school (these are all new build council houses, like an estate).

Constantly screaming and shouting.

They are even awake early on a weekend intimidating people with their bikes and throwing footballs at cars.

The same kids trespassing on our property and thinking they can ride their bikes here and put their bikes against our cars.

Everyones Ring door captures everyones driveway.
I understand that a lot of people have them but to be questioned by neighbours about your visitors and comings and goings is just intrusive and stalker behaviour and makes us very uncomfortable considering we leave other people to enjoy their privacy and mind our own business.

Most of the families are in all day so I feel under constant surveillance as I work from home.

Neighbours getting mardy if you take a stand against their kids bad behaviour and ostracising you for it.

We cant wait to leave here to he honest, it is the most awful place we have ever lived.

We are hoping to leave by early December and we cant wait.

We understand securing a council hard is very difficult but my mental health has really suffered here.

AIBU to give up this house?

Everyone has ring doorbells these days, private rental or social housing will make no difference.

you say the families stay at home but then you also work from home?
lots of people work from home these days. It’s hardly unusual.

the kids sound annoying.

i don’t think I’d give up a council house be a se if annoying kids though. Private rentals are expensive and lots of places have annoying kids.

I don’t have a ring doorbell, and only one of my neighbours does. Although I’m not quite sure what that’s got to do with anything anyway !

I wouldn't give up my social housing tenancy for this. Surely you try and transfer or mutual exchange?.
The security of it would outweigh the cons for me.

Look for a swap.

You can have crap neighbors anywhere.
I'd be trying for a swap, I think.

I've had it bad in social housing, complain about neighbours that are bad to housing associations it takes ages but they do enforce, why should u have to move plus expense

I will look at home swapper and exchange now that I have been here a year.

I did speak to my Housing Officer about it and she advised me to put a fence up and that "nothing can be done about kids playing".

If I make a formal anti social behaviour complaint it will be obvious it is me and will just be even more awful living here.

Its the noise that really bothers me with the constant screaming and shouting as it wakes my baby and toddler up.

Please leave. If you are financially capable of private renting then you morally should private rent. Every day that you remain in social housing is taking a property away from someone who cannot afford private rent. Do the right thing, it's right for society and it's right for you.

You have more protection from bad neighbours if those neighbours are social housing tenants than if they are private tenants or owner occupiers.

Put a fence up, and report the bad behaviour, the housing teams are used to dealing with this sort of thing.

@HoskinsChoice what are you on about?
You dont know our situation, we cant afford to rent privately as we wouldnt of moved here if we could.

My parents will be giving us a loan to pay so we can move as we hate living here so much.

Your title of 'what's the difference' suggests you're weighing up the your options. Your OP doesn't mention that you cant afford to go into private, it reads as if you've got a choice. If you haven't, I'm sorry to hear that and hope you can sort things out soon.

I agree with you OP. I now own but have lived in a variety of social housing and private rentals in the past and the social housing (including a new build estate like the one you mention) were by and far the worst. I would never buy a house near social housing as I never want to live like that again.

@PeachyKoala
Did you have a similar experience to what I have described?
It really is awful, the kids just seem to think they own the streets how they behave and the noise is awful.

When I rented privately I did not have any of these issues at all, I cant wait to move.

As these are new builds the rents are slightly higher and we are paying 850 for a 2 bed, the rent for a 2 bed privately is around £1000 - 1,100 in our area.

@HoskinsChoice Thank you, apologies for the confusion. At least when we move out it will free up the house for someone who is in need.

If it’s any consolation I own my property as does everyone else in my small street. We still have a neighbour who insists on chucking her screaming kids into the garden at 7am regardless of the day and then proceeds to yell at them. It’s made me long for rainy days as it’s the only time we get any piece.

Ones a secure tenancy and the other isn't.

You would be better off getting an exchange if you want to move. Find your local house swapper /mutual exchange on SM

We live in a new build we own but it is close to social housing. The difference in the behavior of the children from the social housing and the privately owned is shocking. I will never buy near social housing again

My childminder lived on a council estate (not needed a childminder for over 10 years now!) and I have never seen anything like it. 2/3 year old kids playing in the park in their nappies on their own or with 6 year olds 'minding' them!

Feral older primary aged kids on bikes riding down the middle of the road and glaring at anyone who dared drive past them. Never really saw many teenagers as they all went into town to cause trouble there.
It gave me a very strong desire to keep working as much as possible whilst the kids were young to ensure we didn't have to live anywhere like that, my childminder was a fantastic woman but as soon as the kids were in school and I could use wrap around care that's what we did.
Unless I had absolutely no other option I would not entertain the idea of living in or near social housing!

@Mirrorxxx yes that is what I have noticed as well.
These kids will be out playing straight from after school whilst the parents are in the house and not even supervising them.

Some of these kids are like 4 years old left to play unsupervised.

The privately owned houses round here tend to have more consideration and the kids are more well behaved as well.

As soon as we find somewhere suitable we are definitely out of here.

Yes I have sen very young children out alone late at night. Screaming and shouting and no parents checking on them