to expect the council to house us even though DH is sshh ..... working!!

[EverSoSlightlyStressed]

Landlord has a court order for possession which runs out tomorrow. Council have basically said we will have to wait for the court bailiffs to physically kick us out and then go to them with our stuff in binbags before they will provide us with anything even emergency housing which is quite a stressful thought . It could be that we have no more than 7 days until we get kicked out depending on how long it takes for the LL to arrange the bailiffs to come. Obviously I have no problem with the LL wanting us out and feel terrible that he has been forced to take us to court but it is the only way the council will help us.

BTW we are not feckless or scroungers! We have 4 DCs - youngest 2mnths old. DH works around 48 hours a week and has a relatively good wage. We are not entitled to tax credits (child benefit only) and have struggled with the massive amount we have to pay in private rent but scraped by without too much hassle. LL decided to sell house last year, we knew we would have problems renting again as we are both had to go bankrupt (1 year ago) since we moved into this house so our credit is shot and no chance of ever having a mortgage again . Current letting agents said they would not be able to rent to us again because of this as we have no one to be guarantor even though they have had no problems with us and nor will any other agent. There are no properties being advertised by individuals that would not need a credit check round here (except for shared house rooms) and anyway all 3 bed properties are like gold dust so we are in deep shit!!

The council keep telling us that as DH works we should find our own property. We keep telling them that we can't for reasons detailed above. It seems that if he was not working and we were on benefits, they would bend over backwards to help but as he is a taxpayer, they will not do anything. Is it me or is this a bit arse about face??

OP - MP was stating the truth. If you are not prepared to go into a hostel you may have to sleep in your car on on friends' floors. This is what people have to do. To pretend otherwise is ridiculous.

OTOH you might get lucky. That happens, too. LAs have also been known to scare applicants with worst case scenarios.

Maybe you should be able to rely on the council to rehouse you, but the reality is that you can't. So you need to sort it out yourself.

Could you look into taking a room in a shared house for the short term while you get your feet under you again? BnB? etc. I am sure they all suck hugely but there doesn't seem to be much alternative in the short term.

No parents/friends/family that can help you out?

What area are you in ?? It is harder to find a private landlord than one with an agent, but it can be done.

What about renting something smaller for 6mths whilst you look for something more siutable ?

Obviously it's not a good thought, but could you cope renting a couple of rooms in a shared house? It could work short-term, couldn't it? One of the house shares I lived in had a dad and his two little boys in a room and it's a better option than the car!

if you want to get social housing you have to prove that you are 'unintentionally homeless' - if you take on a private tennancy even for a week they won't help you. going to the housing office with bin bags isnt fun but they will accomodate you because you have children but how it works since you arn't entitled to hb i'm not sure.

ask family/friends if they could store some stuff for you short term.

good luck

I am a private landlord and i do not credit check as it is not a guarantee of someone paying - i do hope you are not playing double jeopardy with the council re. not finding somewhere because they just dont have the houses to put you in - 3 beds are as rare as ricking horse poo - lots of private ll like me advertise at the council and i take people off their lists

go to a private ll - if you think something amazing is going to pop up and you will secure long term cheap accomodation you will have the longest wait of your life.

And actually i am not sure if i agree that the council 'should' house people - for working people it is much much easier to get housing than for people on benefits so i do think that their needs should be ahead of those who are working as their choices are even more limited than yours.

You have to grow quite a thick skin when it comes to dealing with councils not matter which service you require. Keep your cool and don't let them get to you or your blood pressure will go through the roof.
One thing your DH working gives you is choice, you probably won't end up in a bedsit and that's a good thing.

'Even if he was earning £55k what difference does that make wrt our current circumstances? We still cannot rent or buy - should we have to live in the car then? '

How on Earth can a person not afford rent on a salary like that?

How do people go bankrupt if they're earning that amount of money?

Who do you think lives in council property, nice middle class folks with great jobs you'd like to invite round to afternoon tea?

We live in council housing (well, it's all HA here).

We got it whilst DH was working. He makes £6/h. We couldn't find anyone who'd take children and partial housing benefit around here, and to move would mean he'd have to give up his job.

So we went homeless.

Then we got this place.

The guy downstairs was a drug dealer who was murdered. The gal next to us had to move after the murderer next to her (he plea bargained down to culpable homicide), you don't need a stereo because everyone else is blaring their music and you'll buy your weight in incense to burn to cover the smell of damp.

Oh, and it's getting light out! Lots of thug kids out at all hours swearing like sailors.

You're ashamed to tell people where you live.

We're living on beans and toast to get this debt paid off and then we're out of here.

Just wanted to say good luck to you ..
I understand why you are getting a lot of negative reaction on this thread because to a lot of people 40-50k is a lot of money ..
Of course that is totally dependant on circumstances and outgoings .. my hubby earns a lot but we are constantly skint because we have to pay for a lot of stuff that most people don't as we have children with disabilities and a coupek fo other unusual mitigating factors..

Whatever the reasons for your current situation and even if it entirely of your own making, no one should be adding to your stresses right now by being judgy ..
I hope you find your way as fast as possible.. but I think you are going to draw a blank with the council .IME there just isnt enought to go around these days ..

Have you tried "Shelter" the charity ?
We were concerned about losing our home last year and they were really helpful..

Good luck - almost nothing is a stressful as imagining your dcs on the street is it ?

I'm prepared to accept that I'm maybe not getting the full picture but if you had notice since November why have you left it until now to look for alternative housing? You won't be entitled to hb, except maybe as an emergency case so why 'use' the system by forcing your landlord to take you to court when you could have been doing what other posters have suggested and put up ads, searched gumtree or whatever, approached the letting agents in your area?

It's an awful situation to be in and I'm not trying to 'kick you while you're down', honestly but I don't understand why you left it so long?

sorry, the murderer next to our neighbour threatened to kill our neighbour after she told the police she'd seen his partner's son around a burning car.

the partner/mother's had 3 of her 5 children permanently removed from her custody.

her other 2 are young offenders.

I dont understand why letting agents wont rent to you if you have a guarantor (not sure if thats the right spelling!). A few years ago we had trouble moving but just needed someone to sign with us and it was no problem?.
You may have to move to a very small house or flat as we did - we had a very very small grotty 2 bed flat while we paid off our debts.

Your husband must be earning a decent wage so really you dont need to be homeless even if you end up in a bed and breakfast (and yes we HAVE done that) so you are in a better position than alot of other people.Its not about working its about income.

I think a lot of people have missed the OP's post where she said she did get tax credits but that they're being reclaimed in an overpayment.

She's not on 55k - guessing she's got about 28k if she's getting that amount of tax credits?

'I dont understand why letting agents wont rent to you if you have a guarantor '

the OP doesn't have one.

I don't think he is earning £55k but I do think it's a bit irresponsible to wait until you are made homeless before trying to sort this out. Seems a bit unfair on your children tbh

ah just read read it say NO guarantor lol. In that case a private lanlord would be your only choice - we have never had a credit check with a private landlord.

eversoslightlystressed, I don't think posting on here is helping today. We've been stressed and having to pull ££££ out of our arses to move house so I do know where you are but no need to be rude to folks who are giving you advice.

THE OP'S HUSBAND DOES NOT EARN OVER £55k!

They aren't getting tax credits because of an overpayment last year.

FFS. Read the thread.

Lol x-post with Laurie & LadyB

You need to go back to tax credits and re negotiate the overpayment being repaid they cannot leave you in dire straits and are pretty reasonable if you explain the situation to them.

if they have four children including a baby under one and are still only entitled to £50 a month then the OPs husband must still be earning a fairly decent wage. If they were on a low income then they would be entitled to alot more than this per month in tax credits.
Only the OP really knows what they spend etc and what they can afford so its hard to say how reasonable or unreasonable it is to say that they are struggling for money.

Its difficult because yes you need help but then some of the problems are of your own making so theres no need to be all cross with the council just because they cant magically make them go away.

You need to find a private landlord and if theres none in your area then you need to consider moving to somewhere where there is as long as dh can still get to work.

And you dont need a 3 bed house you would just like one and the chances of getting one on the council must be incredibly slim. And even if you do get one I think you'll be back on here within the week moaning about all of the issues that expat has to put up with so I'm not sure that will be what you want either.

At least from November - March you will have had enough time to save up for a deposit. Or to clean properly and get your current deposit back - lots of people struggle with that bit.

If you have 4 children and your annual tax credits are £500, then her partner is earning around £50k

Got to feel sorry for the landlords in this as well. Poor fuckers have had to take OP to court, costing them money, time and losing rent. My parents bought a house when my GPs died but couldn't live in it due to mum's work. They rented it (through letting agent) and the bastards didn't pay rent after the first two months. Took 6 months to get them out, all my parents recouped was their deposit which didn't cover the costs of taking them to court + the damage they did. My folks are just regular people, not evil BtL profiteering LLs. In fact this house was an absolute bargain because they only wanted to cover the low mortgage payments.

DH and I were buggered last summer. LL wanted flat back so we agreed. But he is friend of a friend and not a professional - so he didn't serve us written notice. Council couldn't help us with rent deposit scheme as we had to have been served proper notice. They advised us to stay put until LL went to court. Well because we aren't cunts, we didn't do that - it was this guy's home and he wanted to move back to our town and had a job lined up. Instead we scrimped, saved, borrowed and put in the legwork to find someone who'd rent to us with me on unpaid mat leave and DH self employed and earning peanuts.

OP has explained the tax credits hasn't she? They are entitled to them but are not currently in receipt of them because of an earlier over payment - so - her DH doesn't earn 55K -

hve you checked noticeboards in local shops and supermarkets? That's usually where you find places straight through a landlord. My friend was in a similar situation - she saved up a 3 month deposit (not suggesting that's easy) and had a bundle of references and in the end LL's were all fine with it.

Good luck