No more council houses 'for life' - thoughts?

[Ewe]

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A large part of me thinks that with the social housing crisis as it is then this is most certainly a good thing. However, when I start to think about it in more detail I find myself wondering how this could possibly work? How much notice would people get? Would you enable them to downsize if in a house too big? When adult children have left home etc.

I do agree that something needs to be done but it does seem like yet another thing that is going to negatively impact people on benefits (his aim, no doubt!) along with cuts to housing benefit.

Oh but if it is for new tenatnts only I have long agreed with that idea.

AS long as it takes non child dependants intoa ccount obv.

Ewe great if it is so bloody cheap, come pay my rent.

It's not the rest of us doing the tenants a favour per se, but it is the state doing the people a favour. How can ridiculously cheap rent be anything but a benefit? And it's provided by the state and not available to all, ergo, a state benefit.

I'll swap 2shoes, mine (private rent) is just over £1k per month! It is so bloody cheap compared to private lettings, yes that may be down to the inflated property market but that doesn't mean that it's not comparatively an absolute bargain.

ewe. fine, you have to have the severely disabled child as well(only reason we have a HA house.

2shoes, I've never once said that you don't absolutely deserve your HA house, you clearly do and you will always meet the criteria so will never be asked to move on (even if you weren't an existing tenant, therefore any changes wouldn't be applicable to you anyway) and rightly so.

Not everyone is in your situation however and on the whole I do think people should appreciate that it's very cheap compared to having to rent in the private sector, and you have absolute security, I could be kicked out with just 8 weeks notice.

sanctimoany..caring for an elderly relative is not easy. i have done it. the support systems are in place to allow people to stay in their own homes with support, this can be 24 hour support, carers taking shifts - paid for by the state.

now, this is my experience. i do not wish to state that this is available uk wide becuase i am sure it is not.

however my argument is this. assignment should be taken away - as a principle. if someone needs care in their home....they should bloody well get it through the nhs.

re special needs and assignment, this would be the smallest percentage. and im sorry if it isn't PC, but i do not think that we should keep the principle of assignment becuase this will benefit the few people who have special needs, still living when their parents pass away and able to recieve support in their own home.

its crazy to keep the principle of assignment for all based on this small proportion of the population.

I think the average HA can manage to operate a general rule with mitigation circs built in, as per the 'previous affordability' HB rules.

Yes people should revceive care for the elderly but as you rightly say its not there and increasingly will not be due to costs.

My field is SN; I am obviously blinkerrd, but if somoene with SN faced losing ahome when tehir aprent died I would foresee a rise in parents taking the kids with them at the end, IYKWIM. Poeple are terrified what will ahppen to their SN children, I already am about ds3 though 'thankfully' he is severe enough that SSD will help a bit.

What i'd like to see is a surge in teh amount of supported living accoms available eyars before aprents tend to pass on so Sn people can be wells ettled and that's certaionly what I aim at for ds3, but it won't happen, PArent-carers are too cheap.

There are many people in this country that have worked all their lives, paid their taxes and bought their own houses. Many of those people have to sell their houses to pay for care or in order to be able to afford to live. As someone whose parents own their own house I don't have a right under any rules to their house unless they choose to pass something they own on to me. I don't understand why someone who doesn't own something should have the right to pass it on to their children. Of course we would all love a world where we grow old and can choose where we live etc and perhaps not be forced to move away from our community however this isn't reality and to be honest I think people should accept that unless they have worked and own something it isn't theirs and there is therefore a risk that they will have to downsize.

who maintains an elderly persons big 3 bed house and garden? if no family nearby?

elderly people do? el;derly doesn't equate to unable for all

Dad can abrely walk when his leg is bad but when it isn't he's out there digging and planting as mucha s anyone

Oh and iloverainbows

people in councill houses do ofetn work

Dad still works at 68!

He just never earned enough to buy in their rrural commutersville area, high prices in a low income area. He ahd a good job too for a while but when he was amde redundant rather than sit at home went to be a cleaner is a sausage factory- so don't make out council houses = no work ethic please! Only reason they need housing at all is becuase they invested in two things all their lives: a pension in order to be independent and able toa fford a bunglaow, and our educations (not private but all the trimmings)- no trips abroad, car etc

Pension plan collapsed when company was bought out by American owners

And of those that don't work many are disabled, or ill, or carers which makes them there for good reason and not less than someone who owns.

We've owned (dont now, private rent as DH was very ill for a while and lost a job just a few weeks before i gave birtrh so we sold to clear all teh debts and ensure we could get by) and i#ve met a lot of people but never met anyone with a work ethic like Dad who did 2 hours shifts with no days off for months, probably years, on end when I was a child and put it all in a pension plan.

its obvious what i'm saying....can they really maintain the property? lady on our street lives downstairs,doesnt use upstairs at all.

her house is basically maintained by HA but she has to ring and report the repairs...she doesn't. guttering is half off the wall...will be off completely in next winds.....ditto woman next door,has a drug problem,is early fifties....garden is a dump,dog uses it as a toilet...

2 good 3 bed houses....i was in a homeles hostel for a year with my dc....i can see why!!

When DH retires we will have to move out of our house as we will no longer be able to afford it's upkeep. We have lived in the area many years and have strong relationships within the community. I don't see the local authority picking up the bill for us, so why should those in local authority housing have the right to a home for life. Needs change over the years and sadly we all have to move on eventually.

whilst they shouldnt have their 'home for life',they DO have their tenency for life,unless evicted.....the tenency can take them to other areas if they like...as well as smaller,more manageable properties

having the tenency in this day and age is in itself,like goldust!

Whether they can maintain it varies surely?

Parents just did their out completely and the gardens look like they pay landscape gardeners: indeed, Mum is quite reclusive so her Grandkids and her garden are her life.

What one 69 year old experriences wrt to fitness is completely different from another; I used to work for a family where 90 year old Dad was digging spuds by 6am each day. My 90 year old Grandad is a keen gardener. Most people are of course dead by then.

To kayah. Just out of curiosity how would you feel if you were told you had a pay rise so you have to move house?
Just because people pay rent rather than a mortgage doesn't mean that they don't look upon the house they dwell in as their home. We're talking forced evictions here aren't we!!

{ ILoveTIFFANY said.....
whilst they shouldnt have their 'home for life',they DO have their tenency for life,unless evicted.....the tenency can take them to other areas if they like...as well as smaller,more manageable properties

having the tenency in this day and age is in itself,like goldust! }

That's already available through the mutual exchange websites which many local authorities and HA have joined. I'm all for downsizing IF you want to, but I totally disagree with people being forced out of a home they've lovingly cared for for years just because say, a child grows up and moves out.

I think it's right why should a couple in their sixties with no dependants take up a whole house that could fill a family?

Well shadow I've been here for 5 years...... Done alot to my home, with that thinking then I should still be able to stay here as the dc leave one by one??

Ewe Wed 04-Aug-10 10:18:51
2shoes, I've never once said that you don't absolutely deserve your HA house, you clearly do and you will always meet the criteria so will never be asked to move on (even if you weren't an existing tenant, therefore any changes wouldn't be applicable to you anyway) and rightly so.

Not everyone is in your situation however and on the whole I do think people should appreciate that it's very cheap compared to having to rent in the private sector, and you have absolute security, I could be kicked out with just 8 weeks notice.

Just in case you come back and see this(you might have a rl lol)
sorry I posted during the start of a bad head today and allowed it all to be a bit to personal.

No worries 2shoes, very gracious of you! What is this RL you speak of?

Great idea, no more tenancy for life. And am sure that the biggest user of state subsidized housing, in the form of The Queen, will lead by example and vacate Buck House in 5 years seeing as all her children have grown up

I think that having long term leases on council houses is a good idea.

It is ridicolous having an one old lady living on her own in a 3 bed house while a family is in a B and B. Or why should someone with a good job have subsidised rent? Or at least they should pay the private rental levels for their property.

People's circumstances change. Social housing should be based on need.

It is not practical to build more houses. Where are we going to put them all?

Private rental levels are too high because of generous HB allowances and greedy landlords. It doesn't make them the standard normal price or council rent subsidised. Wouldnt a council like a family with a good job to pay full rent asked or are they trying to create ghettos where everyone is on HB.

It worries me what the criteria for a good job would be? It would have to be a damned good job in order to afford mortgages or indeed private rents without HB.

The main problem which hasn't and cant be addressed is the shortage of housing and / or too many people wanting them.

As long as the term of the tennancy is made clear up front then I think its a great idea. Why should people have a house for life when its not theirs.