Lifetime Social Housing Tenancies

[RowsOfFlowers]

Am I wrong or being unreasonable to think that this new policy that Labour are bringing in is very unfair?

I come from a poor-ish background (as in no one in my wider family has any money). However, my mum and Dad did fairly okay and managed to move up the property ladder (through sheer hard work and sacrifice). My dad died a few years ago and so now it’s just my mom. We never received any benefits - and now my DH and I live in a house and pay a high interest rate (thanks Truss) and I don’t know if we will ever pay off our house (if I am to have children and go part time), so we will need to downsize. We don’t qualify for any benefits either but we are in the squashed middle, so we really feel it when anything rises in cost and don’t get any help.

I feel really cross that someone can benefit from social housing for a lifetime, no matter how much they go on to earn, and then if they pass away, they can pass it down as an asset.

I have a friend who’s parents came to this country, got given social housing, their children paid it off (40% discount) and now they all get to keep a £650k house in London. It doesn’t seem fair to me at all. I feel really disillusioned living in the UK.

I asked for a link not a further explanation of why you posted what you did LINK PLEASE!!

If there was no opportunity cost and it was an excellent investment then the state and private investors would be rushing to invest.

Please explain to me how a not for profit entity can be an investment opportunity. There is no profit to attract prospective investors.

A young colleague had her own flat in a very nice street. She said that the way to get one was your mum said the stepfather was abusing you. She said loads of her friends did it. Then she just continued to live at home and sublet the flat

What a load of made up bollocks.

Absolutely true. Something is not “bollocks”because it does not suit your view.

@JenniferBooth - please do not shout. I’m sure I could find a link if I could be bothered.

I could see that in places like my area, where there is enough social housing, quickly gaining and subletting a flat through deception might be possible (IDK why you would sublet when you can just go directly to the HA for less money) but in London where the average wait is 3-4 years, without any shred of evidence or ever stepping foot in temp accomodation or being homeless?

It feels a bit far-fetched, tbh.

Just Google “Grenfell Tower subletting” and a whole host of articles comes up - from Guardian if you like, and also a govt report saying illegal tenants would have an amnesty.

Yes, subletting happens, and I am aware it was an issue in Grenfell Towers, but it happens when people who were in genuine need of a property at the time they gained it then move away for whatever reason, but do not want to give up their tenancy.

It doesn't happen by just asking for a London house and getting one because you told a few fibs.

If it were that easy, no one in London would be living in unsuitable temporary accommodations or bed and breakfasts.

Once upon a time the story was 16 year olds having babies deliberately to obtain sicial housing. Now, according to you, it is making up false allegations of abuse by stepfathers to obtain social housing.

If you have any evidence to back up your claim, please post it.

Otherwise, Hitchins' Razor cuts a swathe through this nonsense.

plenty of people sublet for lots of reasons, e.g. needing a place to stay for a short period of time such as 6 months to 1 year or not qualifying because they’re not UK citizens…even students… I can see how that could be quite lucrative in London tbh.

Absolutely not made up b*llocks… and here is a government article on the very matter… took a few clicks of button via google…

www.gov.uk/government/news/protection-from-prosecution-for-unlawful-subletting-at-grenfell-tower

This. ^

This. ^ Can't get it though to some people though. Shuffling people about and moving them out of their social housing property, as soon as the household income is 3 and a half pence over £30K a year fucking bonkers.

No good constantly repeating this though. Some people have so much deep rooted envy and anger towards people in social housing, and they feel so much vitriol towards them, that they are desperate to have people thrown under the bus, and to the wolves, and to be homeless. Their bitterness and hatred skews their views. No point in arguing with them really.

I rest my case

@JenniferBooth - another poster has kindly provided you with a link.

This is a terrible example of someone abusing the system:

https://apple.news/ALWEsVd-ERKun78AU25SQfg

Tiktok well it must better true then 👍

“Government subsidies should be focused on those in greatest need. Social housing exists as a safety net, and resources should be targeted at the poorest to ensure the system remains fair and effective.”

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/property/revealed-128000-families-social-housing-earn-over-71k/

Social housing is NOT subsidized. I don't know how many more times this needs to be explained to you. There is no loss of income to the government because the money is ringfenced for social housing. The cost of buying and maintaining the homes comes from the rent paid by tenants, a lot of whom are taxpayers.

You can what if all you want about the potential loss of revenue from not being able to extort people the way private LL do. That's not the way it is, it is not the way it ever has been or ever will be.

And your link above proves why private rents are too high and the subsidies are going to LLs because the only way that woman is getting £4k a month in UC is if £2k of it goes towards paying someone's buy-to-let mortgage.

Social housing is NOT subsidized. I don't know how many more times this needs to be explained to you

Infinite times on these boards and not just this thread. We're all shouting into the void on this issue I'm afraid!

I don’t know where this myth has come from but you’re right, however many times it’s explained it still persists.

Yes, the funding for those homes is ring-fenced, but I’m pretty sure that the rent paid is not enough to fully maintain it. Housing associations usually use a cross-subsidy system to offer social and affordable homes.

“In 2010, funding for affordable housing was reduced by 60% as part of the drive to cut the deficit. Funding for new social rented housing stopped completely and an affordable rent tenure was introduced, where homes are rented at up to 80% of market rent. The government shifted its focus to supporting first time buyers, with investment in shared ownership homes and schemes like Help to Buy.
Although housing associations used their own funds to keep building some social rented homes, the reduction in funding since 2010 has meant that fewer social and affordable homes have been built. In 2010/11, nearly 36,000 social rented homes were started. The next year, after funding cuts, that number reduced to just over 3,000.
Today, it is widely accepted that England is facing a housing crisis. Homelessness is rising, private rents are unaffordable for many, and many people are priced out of buying a home. Social housing can provide the answer but there is nowhere near enough to meet demand. Researchcarried out for the National Housing Federation and Crisis shows that we need 90,000 new social rented homes every year but a lack of funding means only about 5,000 are being built.”

So, I do believe the answer could be to build more social housing, yes - but that does require funding. And as the country is in a deficit, here we have the funding and housing shortage issue. The crisis was created over a number of years of a shortfall in social housing being built. I guess this is another reason why I do not support right to buy or lifetime tenancies for social housing specifically.

If you live in affordable housing, then I think that’s different. But as social housing is specifically for lower earners and I guess the most in need, I think there needs to be a system where as a tenant, your circumstances are regularly reviewed, to see if you need to go up to affordable rent.

How about that?

Well said. BUT.. You're wasting your time. The hatred, resentment, and vitriol for social housing tenants runs too deep with some people. They won't believe facts, because it suits them to believe bullshit that paints social housing tenants in a bad light.

Also @RowsOfFlowers that article you have put up (at 10am today) is a load of made up nonsense I'm afraid, no matter how much you would like it to be true.

Can you explain why it’s made up nonsense?