do i stay in my damp cold expensive house or lie through my teeth so my kids can have a nice home??

[bellarose2011]

just looking for some advice really, i am a single mother to 2 DD, 10 months and 2yrs.
we currently live in a 3 bed semi detatched house, it has an old back boiler which makes the gas bills huge yet we are still always freezing. the garden is a vertical hill (literally!) there is mold growing on the kids bedroom wall. the double glazing doesn't work and there is puddles of water on all the windowsills every morning. i hate it!!
in the area i live there is a shortage of social housing and my name is on all council/housing association lists. my only hope is a house from an estate agents. but of course they won't accept DSS.
now i get my housing benefit paid to me so there is no reason i need to disclose this other than it being dishonest. but i know i would be a great tenant, i have never not paid my rent, i'm a clean freak and have no pets.
i have found a perfect house that i can afford and have the application form in front of me, i know i won't get it if i tell the truth. i have a friend who runs her own business and would say i worked for her. i just don't know what to do??
the eatate agents use MARAS, will my bank tell them where my funds come from?

[Graceparkhill]

Agree with all techy advice . Also have a think about how and where you dry your washing. With 2 wee ones you must have loads and if you are drying indoors pints of water will be circulating within the house.

If you can't open the windows this moisture has no where to go.

Same applies to shower/ baths. Ventilation is key to avoiding condensation .

I know not easy when it is so cold and heating so expensive.

[bellarose2011]

yes i dry at least one load of washing a day, sometime 2/3.
i dry it on or infront of the radiators, im sure this is probably the worst thing i can do as far as damp/condesation goes but just havn't got anywhere else to do it.
i do have a tumble dryer but rarely use it, somebody gave it to me. ive always thought they were really expensive on electric, not sure if thats correct?
i have bled radiators (v.easy!) and that has definatly helped.

[ShotgunNotDoingThePans]

Excellent! Next job: glazing film for windows here.

You can get insulating tape to go around the door frames as well, to fill in any possible draughts. I think you can also get ot for windows, if they're sash-opening ones.

[ShotgunNotDoingThePans]

Oh, came across this: information for landlords re. grant to cover cavity wall/loft/and one other I forget insulation.
It seems it's the tenant who applies as they are responsible for the bills, but that means your benefits situation/income is taken into account rather than your landlord's.
Worth having a look and maybe showing it to him.

[cumfy]

It's interesting to see how different the general response is to this compared to say when OP asks about lying on their CV.

A very typical response then is along the lines - "As long as you can do the job, good for you; it's not like you're carrying out surgery is it ?".

For a tenant the "demands" are very easily met; pay the rent and don't trash the place.

So why the difference for the OP ?

[kickassmomma]

Some estate agents accept DSS, I applied for two houses both accepted DSS. Maybe the specific house that you want doesn't accept it therefore you find another that does. If I was in your situation I would be finding any house that was warm an suitable for my dd, first then findin a nicer house to move onto when the move isn't do urgent