Council Housing

[MsAC]

Hello,
I'm new to this and joined today. I was wondering if there's anyone out there that feels the same as me. I rent my bungalow from my local council and to be honest, I hate living here. I've been in social housing since 2012 and feel like I've failed. I'm a single mum to two sons but living here and seeing the worst kind of people makes me feel hopeless. I don't fit in at all. I would like to go back to private rented accomodation but Estate Agents don't seem to like single parents who are earning less than £30,000 a year. Anyone else in the same boat?

I can see your point but please don't give up a secure council tenancy for private renting, particularly with children. There's very little security of tenure - you could potentially have to move every couple of years (very expensive re; moving costs plus new deposit before old one is refunded) or more, children might have to change schools, can't do what you like to the property etc. Rents can go up annually and will probably be double the cost of your Council rent and it's hard to find a decent house if you are on a low income. A council bungalow is as rare as hens teeth. Maybe try to provide some enrichment activities for the kids so they see a different set of people with aspirations? Scouts, joining a library, free local theatre etc

A bungalow could be quite sought after - could you homeswap to a different area if you dislike where you are?
Council housing definitely isn't a failure - my mum tried so hard through my childhood to get a secure council tenancy so we would have that stability, unfortunately we weren't successful so had to leave our home area as it got too expensive to rent there.

So you want to move into more expensive housing that you can easily be evicted from?

What's so awful about your bungalow?

Mutual exchange would be a good idea if you can find something: england.shelter.org.uk/housing_advice/council_housing_association/tenancy_exchanges

Do you have savings? Would shared ownership be a possibility for you?

I agree. I think it would be a big mistake to give up your council bungalow for private rented.

My niece is in private rented, pays a fortune in a not very nice but convenient to town area. That has made it worth it for the last 7 years (she once had to move out when house was sold but luckily new owner took her on as a tenant after a month in new place with horrendous landlord - she had to fight and go to ombudsman to get her deposit back). Fast forward and noisy new owners next door has changed everything. Their behaviour is causing her extreme anxiety so she is looking to move ASAP.

Buying is out of the question in our area (SE) and she doesn't qualify for council or housing association so has to carry on renting privately which means she can never save a deposit even though she earns good money. It's an impossible situation to get out of and she has zero security. Also there is no guarantee of good neighbours even though they might be owners and many are rented out anyway. And if you rent privately it's rare to be allowed a cat or dog whereas in council housing you really can treat it as your long term home.

With your children in mind please keep the stable home you have. Do you qualify for the old right to buy scheme? That way you could build some equity and then sell and move / buy somewhere more suitable perhaps for their teenage years?

Why don't you look at developments with mixed housing types on the swapping websites, and let your landlord know you are open to changing, bungalows are in big demand

It would be a really bad idea to give up your secure tenancy for private rented. Don't do it.

Hi everyone,
Thank you so much for your messages. So many things I hadn't considered......its useful to hear others' views.
I think its the village I dislike. We have a strong 'traveller culture' here and I don't mean the peace loving 'hippy' sort, I mean the sort that race horses and two wheeled carts up and down the road, don't work or at least officially and dump rubbish 5 meters high at the end of road to their camp which is half a mile from here. They make my blood boil. One of them lives directly opposite my bunglow, shouts and swears a lot and is generally unpleasant.
I hope I don't sound ungrateful in my ranting. I have been homeless before for nine months and sofa surfed so I do appreciate the permanence of a secure tenancy.
I will look into swapping.

@humblebumblebees
I'm sorry for your niece and hopes she finds something soon.

@AnotherEmma
Thank you for your message. I do have savings but it wasn't enough when I enquired previously.

I disliked village life too, the travellers weren't the problem (around 10 families and they lived around the back with no bother) it was the "Ive lived here for generations" attitude I hated, openly hostile to us because we bought a house (we moved there for work nearby none of them bothered to work). Edge of a city is so much better in my opinion or a new town

@stucknoue
Thank you, you have hit the nail on the head. I too have experienced that attitude here because the average age is 65 and they have this weird thing here where they watch you peeping around their net curtains. I can't even wash my car without someone staring. I also hate the village shop. It is the only place I know where out of date food is sold for 10p depending on the item. My son bought some chocolate from there that expired over a year ago. He paid full price for that though! I'm going to move to a large town. Thank you for your sound advice! :-)