to think nobody will want to swap houses with me ,ever?

[divastrop]

have been on house exchange sites all week and i just cant see us getting out of here as nobody has heard of this town,and those who have know its a s**thole.we are in a HA property and i cant see any other way of us moving away from here.

How long have you been trying to swap?

IllegallyBrunette is in the same position - has just been badly let down by the same person again.

What swap websites are you looking at? Which area are you in?

You have my sympathy diva. As Fio said, I have just been let down for the second time by the same person.

Which sites do you use ??

Sorry Fimbo not fio.

Too much wine that is.

Just to back up what NDTH says - we rent privately and get half the rent paid by housing benefit. Although I can understand why you might not want to lose the security of an HA house.

we are on benefits at the moment due to health problems,but we want to move as there are no jobs where we are so once we are in a position to look for work we will actually have a change of finding some

we want to move to essex,i am originally from there and my family live in essex/suffolk.i dont want to be too near my mum for various reasons but we want to be closer than we are now(350 miles away).

i am worried about going private as im pretty sure if we give up a HA property we wont be able to apply for council/HA property in the future,plus there is the security factor.

i have only been looking for a week,i joined a couple of free sites and today joined homeswappers but i just feel disillusioned as nobody seems to want this area atall,so there seems to be no hope.

illegallybrunette-i was let down when exchaning a few years ago.the other family pulled out at the last minute.then 6 months later they called round and asked if i still wanted to exchange so i agreed and that time it went through.i was devastated when they let me down the first time though.

I agree with not losing the security of a HA/Council place. I'd not be up for private renting again either.

I have looked on Homeswappers and CCHE i think.

Tbh i think there are alot of timewasters out there.

Is it like an advert where you could BIG up your area diva, or is it just basic details.

PS I do know where you live so I understand your feelings.

can i get links for home swap sites please?

un;less any of you two want a 3 bed bungalow, disabled accessable property in herts?

A week isn't long though Diva, I know moving house is a hugely stressfull thing but I think if you really want to move it will happen somehow. Stay positive woman! And be a bit patient!

Your present house does have benefits doesn't it? It might suit people who want more space and aren't able to work so won't be affected by the lack of jobs in your area.
You do probably need to see the potential of it for other people.

I hope you are not going on the exchange sites saying 'does anyone want to move to a shithole?'

Divastrop. I am in a rubbish area and have been on the transfer list five years now. I am registered on homeswapper and cche, but anyone that knows my hometown, could tell you what people think of my estate.

I go in cycles of being so utterly depressed about the area we live in or thanking my lucky stars for having a secure home for my children.

We have thought about private, but can't afford the rent , they would be almost three times what we pay now.

People say to me, your turn will come , but I really don't think it will and we are even offering to downsize in hope of a move.

Anyway that turned out to be rather long , I just wanted to say I understand how you feel!!

Misdee: homeswapper is a good exchange site, the council and ha's pay your membership if they are registered , it seems to be avery active site and you get emails once a week with potential matches.

It comes down to priorities maybe. If the security and lower rent outways the benefits of PR then it is worth staying put.

But if your sanity/marriage/children's future is threatened you might have to let go of that kind of security.
If you are moving to an area with loads of PR properties there is some security in that...more competition keeps the rents reasonable, if the landlord tries to put the rent up too much or wants to sell up, you can just find another PR.

NI might be different but over the years I've left a council house to rent privately, then got a housing association house, left it for private, then got a council house, left it to rent private...ie 3 times I've had no problem going back to social housing when necessary.

thanks for the site info,. have registered and made a couple of sounds of interest at two placers (one ideal for us, but bet they say no)

maybe those of us on the exchange sites should big up each others houses by posting on each others ads with things like 'oh,your house sounds great but i would need an extra bedroom' etc

supersilly-no,i didnt mention shitholes.i put 'close to the town centre' which is true,maybe i should put that the house would be ideal for those with an active social life and teenage children(ie opposite a cabaret bar and within easy stumbling distance of all the local nightspots).

the annoying thing is,at least 3 local families that i know of would kill to get my house as the landlord who owns most of the PR houses round here is a miserable git and the HA properties are very sought after.

Have faith it will happen just takes time and wont happen overnight

My mate has just house swapped out of one of the worst estates in the city to one of the best -

someone will want to be where you are - family connex etc

Diva Noonki is right - there is someone out there who wants your house - you just haven't met them yet

Remamber how chuffed you were to get that big house - well someone else will be chuffed to get it too and hae their own reasons for moving

Its easy to feel paranoid and that there is a jinx - it took us well over a year to sell ou last place, 'cos it was next to a railway and a main road.

I felt really jinxed but then we had two offers in two weeks

My Mum took abut 18 months to sell her place - then it all fell into place really quickly

A week is nothing, really - try and keep positive

Make sure you big up your own house in the description and try and rememebr all the good things about it that you went for when you moved in

i hope so.i just feel trapped in this town now but i ffel guilty for wanting to move as the kids have friends.dh doesnt want to go private now.i dont think it would be a good idea.i remember when i was trying to get an exchange out of the council house i was in i had kind of obsessivly checked the exchange register every other day and it wasnt untill id long given up and forgot all about it that i got a phonecall out of the blue from somebody with my perfect house(at the time).