How does a hiring work?

[lktoday5]

Hi all. DP (DH to be) is having a slight trauma with the HIC and now they've said he has to apply for a hiring. Can anyone tell me how these work? Do you get a certain amount of allowance to find somewhere? Or do they find you somewhere? All advice welsome!

Not sure I think they now let you look for something of the right type in local area, used to be there were certain companies they always hired through but not Sure if that still happens. I think cost wise they pay what is the local "going rate". Friends who were in northwood were entitled to 4 bed as they were both major equivalents - local going rate was £3000 per month. Where I am we could get an 8 bed detached house with a pool, gardener and sea views for £850!!! For our entitlement they would only need to pay about £400 per month so it depends where you are looking.
Worth noting in northwood they had 15 empty 1/4s all previously flooded or subsiding and they had about 14 families in hirings! It would have been much cheaper to have repaired the 1/4s!!

Sorry LK - it's me again.

I think you can now find your own and if it's more than the allowance, you can pay the difference. That's right mrssnaplegs isn't it?

I know that our friends had a property (5 bed huge farmhouse in a village in the middle of nowhere - towards Colchester) when he was a captain. Not sure if he paid the difference or whether the allowance just covered it. That was about 4/5 yrs ago though.

Think they will have a list if you need help finding one. The places I mentioned in my private message are the places nearest camp, other than the other patch I mentioned.

Oh and you can put your name on the list for a quarter too I think - you don't have to stay in the hiring do you mrssnaplegs?

And if you're too bothered about the extra bedroom, it's worth your DH asking if they have spare quarters of that rank available if you're happy to take one.

if there are 1/4 of the next grade up available you can request one of those but have to pay the higher charges - they are not normally that different

not sure on the hiring specifics but the JSP should have the details - your DH can access it at work through intranet

You will have to pay grade one rent for your hiring and the Hic will top up the rest as long as it's under the allowance that they'll pay iyswim, I'm rubbish at remembering figures though sorry.

thanks all - we're toying with the idea of just waiting till Aug when there is a bit of changover on camp and seeing if something else comes up but tbh, I wanted to get in earlier as i'm 15 weeks pg with 1st child and need to switch my care as im consultant led - oh the joys!

and thanks vintage - you really are the most helpful person in my life right now, I'm hoping everyone on patch is just like you

It must be getting on for a decade since we had a hiring (where did those years go). Back then, there was a rent ceiling (which you were allowed to top up), and we were shown a short list of 3 properties - all of which we rejected as they were dreadful. We were then told we were on our own; so we went off and did exactly that.

The biggest problem was that the rent ceiling was actually too low for the area and the size of house. We compromised by choosing in a more rural area - rooms were small, but the setting was lovely!

Happy hunting!

We are in a hiring or SSFA as they call it. Basically all it is is a private rental - there is no rental ceiling. Just as long as the house is the same size you are entitled to.

You are permitted to source one yourself. You pay Grade 1 charges for it automatically and you have 28 days to appeal the grading. I would say they are very reluctant to downgrade SSFA's in view of the current financial climate. We couldn't get ours downgraded.

These days it's all done through these people

If you do source one yourself bear in mind the letting agency will want a security deposit which they hold onto until you vacate the property. We had to stump up 3.6K!