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Original poster

housing crisis

28 replies

em26 · 15/12/2004 13:55

im prob not in the right section.. but i cant find my way around this! site has been recommended to as u ladies r apparently v knowledgable! My daughter is nearly 3, and im a working single mum.Been renting a 2 bedroom house nr chelmsford in essex for 18 months, and have found myself in debt trying to manage with everything. trying to get out of my lease, and hope to move back to my mums next month.only 4 a few months as she is downsizing and wont have room for us much beyond may next yr.am on housing list, but have basically been told i earn too much and they wont help me..95% of my salary is rent/bills, travel to london and childcare.although i am on the list.they say i should b able to afford to rent a place.i really cant.if the council wont help me, im going to be renting a 1 bedroom flat as thats all i can afford.i feel im being punished for workin..any advice greatly appreciated.. )

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spacedonkey · 15/12/2004 14:01

I think the "easiest" way to get public housing would be to move back in with your mum, then, when she downsizes, get her to "evict" you, effectively making you and dd homeless. I know what you mean about feeling like you're being penalized for working.

Welcome to mumsnet by the way!

spacedonkey · 15/12/2004 14:03

Meant to add, if you can, go to the CAB for unbiased advice

ZCMUM · 15/12/2004 14:03

Yes I know what you mean, recently DP got new job so we moved to other end of country. Had to rent tiny flat as house prices much more down south, get paid and once we pay rent/c.tax/travel to work/g&e/water etc, we're actually in the -! Council say we have no points???? They say we have to look for other privately rented acc. but they wont help us out with rent on privately rented acc. cos they're higher rents than the council think the property is worth per month! If DP packed in his job, we'd get house and be much better off per week than we are now!

Carla · 15/12/2004 14:03

No advice em26, just wanted to bump this up and say {{{{{{{BIG HUGS}}}}}}}}} Someone will be along soon with some wonderful advice

ZCMUM · 15/12/2004 14:06

If your mum hasn't much room, you will move higher up the council list because of overcrowding.. I think that's right

Original poster
em26 · 15/12/2004 14:08

if i get my mum to evict me, wont they just look at my salary and say rent a place? i dont know how any of this works, and they arent 2 helpful! the 1 time i will ever need stat help, and i ended up with a woman with pmt on the phone who said rent a cheaper place..cow!

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spacedonkey · 15/12/2004 14:09

They might do that, yes em. You might even have to cut your hours or give up your job completely to get public housing - it is very difficult, I know

Original poster
em26 · 15/12/2004 14:31

it sounds totally impossible! and if i have to quit my job just for help with a housing situation then thats discrimination surely? i've tried to help myself, and failed..now they will probably punish me and my daughter and have us rent a 1 bedroom house..that makes me feel a totally unfit mother..

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spacedonkey · 15/12/2004 14:32

No, you're not at all an unfit mother, it is the system that's a failure, not you!

Can you approach this from another direction - you say you have a lot of debt, can you visit CAB to see if you can reduce your monthly outgoings?

Original poster
em26 · 15/12/2004 14:36

my friend did that.. its def a possibility.. but im ambitious, and want to own my house again 1 day.. i wouldnt want debt management to go against me.. its not alot of debt, just feels alot to me, and makes all the monthly outgoings tight.. who'd be a woman hey?!!

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Noella · 15/12/2004 14:45

Does your daughter qualify for nursery fee subsidy yet as this would cut some of your childcare costs?

Original poster
em26 · 15/12/2004 14:49

she is 3 next month, so i think her playschool fee will be paid for that term.. thank u.x

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jellybabe83 · 15/12/2004 15:12

If your Mum evicts you, they have a rewsponsiblity to house you, as you'd be homeless. They don't really tend to look at your salary, and you can always say you can't afford a place with two bedrooms. My mum wrote to our concil when I was pregnant, and we got a place the week before the date we were due to move out. If your Mum writes and says you need to move out straight away, for whatever reason (mine said because the baby would keep her and my brothers awake....!), then they should act pretty quickly. We had an appointment with our housing office, and then had the keys two days later. It may be that you're put in temporary accomodation to start with, like we were, but we got this place 6 months later, and the temporary place was actually really nice too....!
Good luck!
xx

jellybabe83 · 15/12/2004 15:13

Sorry, meant to say responsibilty......!

Original poster
em26 · 15/12/2004 15:18

thanks very much! i just feel like i have such a fight on my hands! appreciate the advice.. i hate all the uncertainty..especially at this time of yr! thanks again.x

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jellybabe83 · 15/12/2004 15:21

Lol, my Mum used to tell me, when we were waiting for a place, how she used to go to the housing office with me when I was a baby, and refuse to move until someone spoke to her.....! She got a place not long after..... hmmmmmmm.......
xxx

Original poster
em26 · 15/12/2004 15:23

ist definately worth a thought! watch this space!

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Original poster
em26 · 15/12/2004 15:27

any1.. if i exit now, will i be able to come back to this conversation l8r?

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Berchta · 15/12/2004 15:44

yes - just look on the active conversations tab at the top of the screen.

iwork for a housing association and would say this, bad publicity will help you - goto the local papers with your plight. find out your legal situation and your rights from the CAB to back up your case.

write letters to the local councillors - all of them. write a letter to your MP - and forward a copy of these to the local council housing office.

if you can go in weekly and speak to someone so you are always in their mind. phone up every couple of days.

i say this with up most sincerity - THE squeeky wheel ALWAYS gets the oil. if you make their life hell they are more likely to do something about you just to shut you the hell up - i know this as i sit next to housing officers every day.

ask to get refered to housing associations, phone them directly too - you can get a list of those in your area from the "housing corporation" website. ask them how you would get on their list - i suspect you will have to wait until you are nominated by the council - but you never know - its worth a try

please go to the CAB.

Berchta · 15/12/2004 15:47

oh and take in a pad to write things down - ask them to repeat certain phrases and if they say something a bit rubbiosh - ask if you can quote them in any future correspondence - nothing will make you tell the truth as an employee than thinking someone is going to pull you or grass you up for it.
always ask for their name and position - the pad will make them nervous
if someone is nasty to you ask for a complaints form and ask for the complaints proceedure - ask to speak to their superior.

Original poster
em26 · 15/12/2004 15:54

thank you so much.. that is all a great great help.. ive copied and pasted it into word so i can keep referring back to it!!! thank you so much!

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ChristmasCracker · 15/12/2004 16:28

Hi em, Spacedonkey is right, if you move back to your moms and then she downsizes get her to write a letter saying you are going to be made homeless because she has no room for you. This will give you loads of points BUT be careful it will mean you have prioity points and then you are expected to accept the first thing you are offered unless you have a good reason to refuse it.

Also get your H.V or doc to right a letter once ytou move to your moms to say that you are living in cramped conditions etc and it is making you depressed etc. Anything like that will give you extra points.
They council shouldn't be taking how much you earn into consideration, that has nothing to do with it, so i wouldn't worry about that.

Good luck, and just ask if you need to know anything else.

ChristmasCracker · 15/12/2004 16:33

Also agree with Berchta make sure you always get the name of the person you speak to because you can garuntee that at some point somone will tell you something and then someone else will tell you it is wrong, then you can give them the name of who you spoke to etc.

Also if you see any empty properties that you are interested in, ring them up and ask whats going on with them. Don't be fobbed off with "it is already allocated' they always say that.
Make a note of any empty properties and see how long they are empty for.

If nessercary ring them every day. It will pee them off but your name will be on the tip of their tounge when something comes up.

Original poster
em26 · 15/12/2004 16:36

again.. thank you so much.. all very useful.. i've been on the housing corporation website all afternoon gathering address.. thanks every1! x

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Original poster
em26 · 15/12/2004 16:39

do they really have to help me? are they just trying to detract me from a council place n sort it on my own?

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