Family wants me to give up my social house and I'm not - wwyd?

[spicy2001]

I currently rent a three bedroom social housing property and I live on my own. Most of the rent is paid for by universal credit and I have to pay 25% bedroom tax which is very affordable to me which is for two rooms and a shortfall of £30.55p.

I did speak to a housing officer and they said I am legally allowed to occupy it, and as long as I pay the rent on time, tax and shortfall, then everything is fine. I don't feel guilty for occupying this three bedroom house, it's been my home since I was born.

Recently, I noticed that my family were talking a lot about me downsizing. I asked why are they talking about me downsizing? They said because I don't need this property and have to downsize.

I explained I'm legally allowed to stay here, this is my property and not yours. I get that I don't need this property but I'm staying here because I'm allowed too. I found out that they actually joined a site called "home swapper" and a site called "glass bob" my sibling set up an account using her email address to advertise my property. If I'm correct, I've never joined these so I don't know 100% but they're platforms where you can do mutual exchange and advertise your property.

I phoned my housing association and explained the situation, they've started an investigation and they are speaking to various departments to see if they can do it from the end to see if they can do anything as they approved it but they don't know if they can disapprove it.

The other day a tenant from another part of my cul-de-sac came round and told me she knows I'm downsizing and she has a friend whose currently living in a one bedroom flat with his wife and they've got a one year old daughter and another baby on the way. I explained to this person my family have been trying to get me to downsize to a one bedroom flat and I'm not actually looking to downsize so I won't swap with them but told her I do sympathize with their situation.

She told all my neighbours about her friend and now all the neighbours are peed off at me because I'm not downsizing. My family are also peed of that I'm not downsizing. As far as I'm concerned I don't care as I have the legal right to stay here for as long as I like or want.

I just wanted to know though what would you do if you was in my situation?

Even in private owned houses the same can be said.

We are a couple looking to buy a 3 bed.
If a lot like us also want a 3 bed, the cost of 3 beds go up.
So us with no kids that can afford a 200k house will get it
The family that can only afford 150K because they have child expenses won't.

OP, you have to act in your own best interests, because no one less will. You would be quite mad to give up your tenancy, and thankfully you seem aware of that.

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Not sure why some posters are continuing to rant and getting increasingly upset because their insults aren’t having the desired effect. She’s been very clear as to what she’s doing, and she doesn’t need anyone else to approve of it.

Immorality is taking a three bedroom social housing property when you only need one bedroom.

Private rents are obscene (I'm in one) but housing benefit reflects the price of the area. The problem is a lot of private rentals won't accept people who are on benefits and won't have the obscene deposit they need.

That's what social housing is for. There is absolutely no way the OP wouldn't be able to get a swap with even someone desperately needing to upgrade from a two to a three bedroom, never mind a one.

This whole post is bogus.
Theres no way, a young single person, with no children, working full time gets enough financial assistance to cover their housing costs minus the cost of the extra bedrooms. Just run it through entitledto.

"New" tenancies could charge up to 80% of the market price. Lots of SH has been demolished with the promise that SOME of the flats on the new development would be SH but they hardly ever materialise. When they do, I have heard of people being charged £450 service charges (in Slough) for a 2 bedroom flat.

Legally right morally wrong you are selfish

Your family sound like twats but no, I don't think you should be entitled to a three bed.

That’s very true but they aren’t building any are they. We need more housing stock of all kinds. We need affordable housing. Properly affordable. In South London “affordable” housing flats start at around £400k. That’s a piss take

She pays £30 bedroom tax.. that is nowhere near the actual rent difference between a 1-bed and a 3-bed council property so she's not actually 'topping up the rent', she's just paying 25% more in tax.

Op I'm guessing you are early 20s? Which is very young to be without any parents.
I think you should stay in the house esp if you can afford it. As you say you don't know where you'll be in 10 years time. That house could again be a family home.

I know 2 people who lost parents at a similar age to you, both of them clung to their family homes. One bought a sibling out and the other was an only child.

You forgot the bit that tenants are subsidised by taxpayers.

Hi Op, firstly I have to say your family sound god awful and I would be giving them a wide berth.
Please ignore the folk giving you grief, pure jealousy and spite. You are not responsible for the housing crisis, you didn’t open the floodgates to uncontrolled immigration,you didn’t sell off the social housing without rebuilding more and you didn’t buy a social housing property (at a massive discount )depriving other needy folk of it.
I wonder just how many folk on this thread have bought their council homes or whose families have, whilst being able to afford to buy privately? Quite a few I suspect,and just how many are living off benefits and contributing zero?
You have chosen to live in the home you grew up in, the rent is getting paid and you are working full time, you’ve done nothing wrong.
Whatever you do ,don’t give up a home in a good area for a tiny shithole and extortionate private rent,that would be bonkers. Get your degree, and save up whilst renting for your own place.
You are busy improving your life and I suspect this has put your family’s nose out of joint,along with some very sad folk here.When you graduate you’ll more than pay back any help you’ve had along the way, believe me, we have the most punitive taxes in this country and all those squawking “ injustice “ will get their pound of flesh from you via the taxman,sorry 😬.Move onwards and upwards and the very best with your degree.

Subsidised in what way? Lots of the tenants ARE tax payers. The rents are not subsidised; they are just not inflated like private rents of greedy landlords

This is fraud OP. Document everything and go to the ombudsman. Appalling that the housing association haven't blocked this. There are several points where someone should have looked at the record and thought 'hang on, that's not right '. They need to be thorough!

Ok yes I agree.

I guess I don't see an issue with someone who has saved and bought a private 3 bedroom house (without any UC or gov help etc).

Brilliant! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

They're subsidised in the sense that there is an opportunity cost in owning any asset. The rents are set below the opportunity cost.

(Or in plain language the landlords could get a much better return, but choose not to. And in some cases the landlord is "the taxpayer".)

@chocorabbit Absolutely correct. Municipal Dreams The Rise and Fall of Council Housing explains all this beautifully.

Ive been in my one bedroom social housing flat since Oct 1994 Would any of the SH tenant haters castigating OP like to guess why.

If you have good long term prospects could you buy the house? You would have security then and could downsize long term if you want to.

I mean if this is true they crossed a line (potentially a legal one) which is crazy but at the same time it does not pain you in a pleasant light either.

You can litrally stuff your face with food in in front of crying hungry children but it obviously doesn't mean you should... just because you 'legally' can doesn't mean you are morally justified doing something or anyone has to be nice about your greed.

Taking a very limited supply item just 'because you can' that you in no way need in a time of crisis when others are suffering from needing it is honestly selfish and if EVERYONE in real life is even being bold enough to tell you you might take that as a sign to consider thinking about more than yourself.

They choose not to because they’re not immoral and I’ve already explained they are not for profit organisations.

The problem is far bigger than your 1 house.

Yes, it's due to everyone thinking it's just their 'one house'.

Anyone with social housing should be grateful as private rents are a nightmare on a low income. I do not begrudge anyone for having one, but I do begrudge people using it knowing other people in the same circumstances, but with more people, could utilise it more efficiently.

Swapping is a thing and OP wouldn't be putting herself out barring moving her belongings. She'd be saving money by not paying bedroom tax.

It's very strange seeing peoples replies on different topics. Earlier people were saying how selfish people were who stuck to lockdown because 'what about the mental health of people without gardens'.

What about the mental health of people how live on top of each other on a daily basis simply because others are legally allowed to take a property they don't need and could easily exchange?

It's not brillant.

Why do so many MN posters assume that anyone who doesn't agree with someone else is jealous or spiteful? I can tell you that I, for one, am definitely not jealous of the OP!

Lot of assumptions in your post @Feraldogmum.

I do feel that with the current housing shortage that it is quite selfish for a single person to stay in a social housing home when there are families with no homes. I do think this issue needs looking at.

Nor only do people in social housing pay less rent than the private sector they are often selfish enough to block a family from having a home to meet their needs and happy to see children in a crapped flat whilst they sit in a social housing property too big for them. So @spicy2001 morally selfish.

Can i ask any single parents who may be on here castigating the OP a question.
Why does the OP owe your kids more than the kids OWN FATHER!