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Original poster

Autobid on council housing

13 replies

StaceyGraves · 04/10/2022 18:37

I was wondering if anybody here has been put on autobid for social housing due to being threatened with homelessness? If so, are you supposed to be able to see the bids that have been placed for you in the "my bids" section online or do you have no visibility of bids placed? I was put on autobid a few weeks ago apparently but no idea if the system is actually placing bids for me or not. If anybody has experienced autobid on Keyways in North Northamptonshire any info would be super helpful 🙏

I have tried asking the housing team for more information on how this works but I'd have better luck getting blood from a stone than getting them to return calls or emails. (I appreciate they are super busy so I don't mean to sound rude, it's just I feel really stressed with my current situation!)

OP posts:
Lixxiemc · 19/04/2023 00:20

hi Im on autobid with keyways did you manage to see your bids. my keyways has 2 properties that i should be eligible for however my account says 0 eligible properties, my housing advisor said an autobid will be placed on the properties, but when i click my bids it says 0. how did it all work out for you in the end?

Original poster
StaceyGraves · 23/04/2023 21:33

It turns out you have no visibility of your bids when you are on autobid! So you can't see what is being bid on or where you are in the bid queue and it will always say 0 bids. It says 0 eligible properties only because you aren't eligible to manually bid. Frustrating, isn't it?!

I messaged Keyways about it saying why I felt it would be useful for those on autobid to have visibility and they replied and said they would pass the feedback on to the developers next time they're upgrading the website.

My housing officer assured me that I am having properties bid on for me and last time I spoke with her, she told me roughly where I am positioning in the bid queues and an estimate of how long it would take based on that. (I've still not been housed though.) So your housing officer might be able to give you an idea whenever you speak with them as it seems they can see our bids even if we can't.

Best of luck, hope something comes up for you soon!

OP posts:
JJU · 12/07/2023 22:00

This is just happening to me. I have been bidding and now at a high position. But suddenly my housing association has given me provisional offer I don't want. She bypassed it but today a man rang with place at the same address, said imon Autobids so they will do that. The council didn't Tel me anything about Autobids, and if I can't get a place where I want I won't go , my son is autistic and has schizophrenia. This system is not helpful at all

JJU · 12/07/2023 22:07

My housing application with Leicester council does show my bids and I remove some which are placed automatically if I don't want it. That could be the Autobids part , but I remove any I don't want. Thanks for helping my see , that must be the Autobids part. I've written to my housing association where I'm with to tell them I don't want Autobids from them I hope it works now , it might seem fussy but my son has mental health conditions and I can't go to a worse place , I am on the list due to haressment from a neighbour

Original poster
StaceyGraves · 07/08/2023 13:13

I am sorry to hear it! It might be different in Leicester. For North Northants we can't see or reject any autobids at all. And if we were to get offered one and reject it then we wouldn't get offered any more. It's a tough system. Hope you get it all sorted.

OP posts:
Laylamai · 09/02/2024 16:01

Hiya could I just ask how you remove auto bids. I’m in melton In Leicestershire .
also how did you get on with choosing house that you wanted and suitable. I hope you did! 🙏

JJU · 10/02/2024 05:30

I was offered a place in area didn't want,you can't turn off autobid I am now off the list by choice , it is too stressful

Original poster
StaceyGraves · 10/02/2024 11:03

Laylamai · 09/02/2024 16:01

Hiya could I just ask how you remove auto bids. I’m in melton In Leicestershire .
also how did you get on with choosing house that you wanted and suitable. I hope you did! 🙏

I had a 56 day homelessness prevention duty which they extended way beyond that, but when they eventually removed it because I was still not homeless (I'm living with my ex which is awful for numerous reasons but he's not going to put me on the street) then they offered to remove autobid so I accepted because I was worried about where I might end up. But I've still not been housed. I doubt you can remove autobid if you've been placed on it because you're actually homeless or particularly vulnerable in some way.

OP posts:
Original poster
StaceyGraves · 10/02/2024 11:04

JJU · 10/02/2024 05:30

I was offered a place in area didn't want,you can't turn off autobid I am now off the list by choice , it is too stressful

Awful system, isn't it. This country needs more social housing. I hope you find somewhere suitable for you and your son.

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Laylamai · 10/02/2024 11:26

Oh ok so when they took autobid off you were you not in priority then?
I wonder if they take you off autobid if you move down ?
I’ve turned down a property that was way out and the next one coming up somebody was stabbed outside there last year.
myself and daughter have autism we wouldn’t settle there.
I wonder if council would be kind to consider me needs or not ? 🙏🤞

Original poster
StaceyGraves · 10/02/2024 14:49

Laylamai · 10/02/2024 11:26

Oh ok so when they took autobid off you were you not in priority then?
I wonder if they take you off autobid if you move down ?
I’ve turned down a property that was way out and the next one coming up somebody was stabbed outside there last year.
myself and daughter have autism we wouldn’t settle there.
I wonder if council would be kind to consider me needs or not ? 🙏🤞

I wasn't ever really priority anyway. Even on autobid, I was only band C. I haven't got kids. They tried to downgrade me to D when they took me off autobid but I contested it on grounds of mental health and they put me back on C.

I have also turned down one property; it was in a really rough area that I wouldn't feel comfortable in on my own. It was on a walk as well so not even near a road to make me feel safer going to it. That was a couple of weeks ago, and that was a property that was bid on for me ages ago when I was on autobid. It isn't one I'd have picked on manual bidding.

I don't think the council take things like that into consideration tbh. I think if the property itself is suitable for your needs then they don't consider other things such as how a single female might feel living in high crime areas. I get it, they have to work with the social housing stock that they've got and of course they'll offer a suitable property to you regardless of where it is. It's just tough to deal with that when you're in the system, isn't it.

I'll get struck off for a year if I turn down any more properties in the next 12 months . When I was on autobid, I wouldn't have been allowed to turn down any. You're lucky where you are if you can turn more than that down!

OP posts:
Laylamai · 10/02/2024 16:16

I didn’t know they could put you on auto bids on lower bands. That doesn’t seem right so stressful isn’t it. I hope you get sorted . Loads of really young girls in my area have been given the most lovely houses and I’m being offered crap

Original poster
StaceyGraves · 10/02/2024 20:33

Laylamai · 10/02/2024 16:16

I didn’t know they could put you on auto bids on lower bands. That doesn’t seem right so stressful isn’t it. I hope you get sorted . Loads of really young girls in my area have been given the most lovely houses and I’m being offered crap

Really stressful! I'll keep my fingers crossed for you and your daughter 🤞

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