Social rent and affordable rent

[Goingforplatinum]

What's the difference?

Social rent is lower than affordable.

Typically social rent would be about 60% of market rent and affordable rent would be more like 80% of market rent.

There is wide variation though.

So would a family be able to afford affordable rent if unemployed and on UC, or would they have to go for social housing??

Anyone??

I guess depends where you live OP? In my area of London, ‘affordable’ rental flats go for about £1500 PCM which is obviously not really affordable for many. Social rent is a lot less. A friend pays the council about £450 for a 3 bedroom house here, if she was paying privately it would be over £2k. However I am in an extremely expensive part of the country.

I’m afraid I have no idea how UC works or how much you get as a proportion of rent so hopefully someone who does will be along to help.

Most new tenancies are at affordable rent OP, you're unlikely to find one at social rent level

Ask anyone who lives in these so called " affordable houses " they are not lol social rent has gone up massively also very little difference between social rents and private now x

So if the affordable rent is unaffordable, who actually lives in these houses?

Here for a 3 bed social rent you're looking at £500 whereas affordable is around £800 per month.

All of these questions depend entirely on your local area.
A single professional could afford most ‘affordable’ rents - but a lot of families on UC wouldn’t be able to afford it.

Affordable rent is a con by the Tories to gloss over the lack of social housing. It is defined as 80% of market rent. Essentially developers reserve a few of the less desirable properties on any development at a bit less than top whack rent . Then the Tories talk about all the "affordable homes" that have been built. Social rent is regulated rent set by local authority, and these are very hard to get hold of in most areas. People with household incomes up to £80k can apply for affordable rents and as the landlords can set affordability thresholds (such as needing to show that your rent is less than 40% of your income) it actually means wealthier households are more likely to qualify than poorer ones😡

Where I live 'affordable' rents are set at the Local Housing Allowance which is the maximum amount you can get in housing benefit for a private rental. It's basically social housing at private rental costs, except in social housing you have to supply your own kitchen white goods, carpets, curtains, etc. and have less security of tenure.

Generally professionals on a good wage. I don’t think anyone on a low income would be able to afford an ‘affordable’ rent where I live. But as several people have mentioned, it all depends on where you live. Housing costs vary massively by region.

I have just been offered ‘affordable housing’ I’m currently in social housing £425 a month 3 bed, I’m told by Yorkshire Housing affordable is £167 a week for this particular 3 bed, which is outrageous - it’s completely wrecked inside - I’m trying to find out the rights of affordable housing as surely they should be similar to that of a private rental and to be able to move in without having to fully clean, decorate, carpet etc from top to bottom ? The bathroom is from the 60s, toilet is black as too is the bath with limescale, paintwork outside rotten, garden a jungle, surly they can’t let it to me in this state?