Interesting thing about HA housing on Homes Under the Hammer.

[Pipbin]

It was on a couple of weeks ago but I've only just seen it.
A chap bought a plot of land and built ten houses on it. The other side of the road was already housing association new build housing and the HA contacted him and asked if they could buy all the houses he was building too.

Happy days for him, all houses sold. However they specified some changes. Namely that the bedrooms were two small in the 4 bedroom houses so he had to change the plans to make three bedrooms the right size. He also had to make sure that every house had a downstairs loo, a shed in the garden and that the shed had a ground anchor bike lock thing in it.

I find it very telling that he could get planning permission etc for the 4 bedroom houses that the HA deemed to have bedrooms that were too small.

True, I think the three bed next door sold for £15k more. However I would rather have two large bedrooms than two ok sized and a third that I can't believe can even be called a bedroom.

I asked a HA about this issue as I live in a HA house. It's older so quite small but the newer ones ARE bigger. The HA told me that all their rooms and doors have to be large enough to take a wheelchair.
I guess that makes sense as many people in HA homes are often referred to them for some reason. I was referred as DS is autistic and needed a safe enclosed garden.

It's by no means the only reason but given the lack of housing and the demand for properties it's likely to be those most in need who get them.

The HA told me that all their rooms and doors have to be large enough to take a wheelchair.

A friend of mine was in a shared ownership flat, therefore built to HA standards. All her rooms and doorways were big enough to accommodate a wheelchair even though she was on the second floor in a block with no lift.

Bonkers isnt it Pip?

I think the wheelchair rule applies to most new homes, private owned or council/HA owned.

I have a three bed townhouse and all the doors are wheelchair sized and all the plugs/lights at wheelchair appropriate size. It's also why we have a downstairs toilet in most new houses Joe too. This is despite having three floors with the living room and originally the kitchen too on the first floor.

Having upstairs doors wide enough for wheelchairs can make sense. Plenty of people can manage some walking and stairs but would use a wheelchair/walker much of the time.

I had a 1920s council house and the rooms were generous, even the single room could fit lots of furniture in.the downstairs was small though.

Then I moved to a 1970s. It's a 2 bed compared to my old three, far more modern and square footage is bigger than the 3 bed. My neighbour converted the huge front bedroom into two small doubles.

They went smaller in the 80s/90s I think, but are starting to get bigger again. I know I was shocked at the tiny thin walled houses the housing association built five/ten years ago, but the newer ones are bigger again

I feel Ive missed out! The ex 1980s ha one i have is v small and i couldeasily imagine a 2 bed on the same footprint! I am glad my kids have their own rooms though.,,

I can't help but think that the housing market is so distrorted that people are prepared to pay for houses that truly aren't fit for purpose. Abandoning minimum standards will prove to be disaster.

I often wonder if modern houses reflect the way we live now (no dining rooms, open plan representing a more efficient use of space, etc.) or whether we live the way we do becasue of the houses we're building.

Also the reason Shelter claim many people are homeless, when they are not in most people's definition.

You have to be in severely overcrowded accommodation for a council to accept you are homeless, it's not a case of it being a bit pokey. Shelter uses government figures, same as everyone else.

On the subject of HA requirements - yes they are generally higher than typical new build standard. One of the reasons is that they will generally be more intensively used than housing sold on the open market. you can expect a three bed HA house to be let to a family of 4-6 whereas if it were sold for private sale it'd probably be occupied by 2-4 people.

Yes plate, exactly that. My two bedroomed house is for 4-5 people. We are actually only 3, which is ok as I'm a lone parent, but it's aimed for two adults, two children plus accommodating a baby in either of the rooms as a cot additional. They also view the front rooms as able to house a sofa bed for sleeping arrangements. I know someone in a 2 bed - two adults and four children. Two children in each room, and they have a sofa bed in front room. Council class them as only just overcrowded.

I can't help but think that the housing market is so distorted that people are prepared to pay for houses that truly aren't fit for purpose.

That's exactly it, sadly. I must have viewed 20 houses in the last nine months. So many of them have a third bedroom that is 6m2 or less. You can barely get a single bed and a chest of drawers in. To me, that's not a useable bedroom, but these are all marketed as "3 bedroom houses" and priced accordingly.

Also the number of en-suites squeezed into bedrooms, so you can have the pleasure of having a lavatory and a shower next to you bed with no ventilation - I'd rather have some cupboards, thanks!

So many gardens make me want to weep, especially when you have a crappy garden and a massive lump of concrete big enough to park three cars on at the front of the house.

People are paying upwards of 400k for these houses. I sometimes fantasize that everyone just turns round one day and refuses to play the game any more

New HA homes in Scotland have to be built to "Housing for Varying Needs" Standard. (HfVN). That is a condition for grant funding and is to help ensure that social housing can meet a wide range of needs (e.g. be capable of being adapted for wheelchair use, downstairs toilet so if someone can no longer manage stairs they will still have access to WC etc). The standards are more generous that building regulations require.