Keeping a 3 bedroom council house when your children have grown up

[Iwishitwerewarmer]

Just pondering - what are everyone’s opinions on a single parent raising their children in a council house/housing association house and staying there once their children have moved out? Should they downsize into a one bed flat/smaller property or is it their right to remain in their home/neighbourhood?

Added extra - they have looked after the property well, have landscaped the garden, installed a new kitchen and generally added value to the property.

Why is it always the people who have the least who are being made out to be the bad guys?

I didn't say I had paid off my property. I was making the point that I worked and paid tax. Some people in private rentals get help with their rent from the dwp even if they work full time as their rents are so high.

I don't know but it seems to be a recurring theme on here

Yes, but everyone is a tax payer. Even my 8 year old son. The point is that we all pay tax and yet only a few are entitled to a 50% discount on their rent subsidised by everyone else unless you're suggesting everyone in social housing pays enough tax to cover this subsidy and all other public spending areas that they should fairly contribute to such as education and health?

Yes, private rentals are subsidised by HB so why aren't social housing tenants keen to just switch to a private rental? Because we all know they are not comparable. I won't get worked up about people in an inferior position whilst life tenancies exist that cause house hogging and families to live in disgusting conditions.

They think that private renters don’t get repairs done for them, council tenants don’t pay full council tax and council properties are banded differently for council tax, so don’t underestimate what other nonsense they may believe.

Ha, but that is a hard no from me.
I have lived in a pokey flat before. I am not doing it again.

I'm not sure it's the SH tenants who are the cunts here.

50% discount ?

The people with the least are those stuck in temporary accommodation that can't access social housing. Don't you understand this? It isn't a victimless crime to under occupy a council house.

Paying your own mortgage? Not having your life subsidised by a council/charity if you don't need it. Personally I think council/housing association housing should be assesses every 5 years. If there is still a need great stay there, if you no longer have a need and you can live in the "real world" then that should happen and someone greater need should have the house.

It is always the case on here. Punching down. Easier to do that, than to campaign for more housing stock.

A “ normal house” What's that? Private rental?

I don’t understand your argument.

Subsidy is not about what you or I or anyone else subjectively feels is expensive or cheap. (Maybe £400 for a new build house sounds expensive to you but it won’t to students paying £700 a month for a crappy single room at uni)

Subsidy is the difference between market rent (ie the private sector - what the property would fetch if you advertised it and anyone were allowed to rent it) and what rent is actually charged. In this case, as you’ve admitted that market rent is a lot higher than £400, the subsidy is the difference between whatever that is and £400.

Leech

I'd take a look around some Council houses with mould and other neglected repairs if you want to see some disgusting conditions.

Argh 😫

Social housing rent is often at 50-60% more affordable than private renting according to Shelter. Do you dispute their figures?

Not everyone can buy.
So the people who can't afford to buy are paying the mortgages of private landlords instead. How does that make sense?

Then let those desperate to live there have it then.

It was yes, I didn't understand the rest of your post

Exactly we aren't talking about people with the least in society. We are talking about people who have public assets that are beyond there needs, who are preventing those with the least from accessing them.

Cos them’s the rules

Councils could easily adjust their rent upwards. My rent has gone up more this year than it has in the last 7 as part of my councils 7 year plan.

My council is also spending 14 million pounds revamping a sports facility while making cuts elsewhere. They aren't poor. If they wanted to raise rents they could easily do it

Some people in council and social housing have the least in society. Those on basic UC for example