Can't get rehoused until after baby is born!

[amandapanda]

I enquired at the housing office today about getting moved from my tiny 1 bed flat into a 2 bed because I am pregnant and they said they can't assess me or prioritise me for a move until after the baby is born! I can bid on council properties based on my waiting time but to be honest I stand very little chance of getting one this way as am competing with people with 10 years + waiting time and I have almost 4 years.

I'd really like to stay in council as it's such a good deal and they leave you be! Have had bad experiences with private landlords before so am not keen to move back into private.

So looks like I am facing the situation of keeping this baby in a one bed flat for the first month or 2 - I guess I don't mind, I am happy here - it's just a space issue and it means I can't prepare a nursery Am definitely not going to bother buying a cot, just haven't the space so will just put a crib at the end of my bed.

Oh well, it won't be too bad - it'll be cosy, lol ,and know there are people a lot worse off than me so I am grateful for what I have for now! x

 

[flexilexi394]

Count yourself lucky, I can't get housed full stop, I have to live with my mum and brother! My friends sister was housed into a 1 bed flat when she had her first, and she is still there after having her second. Not sure how much priority you'll have if I can't even get a 1 be place! Maybe my council are just *******s....

 

[amandapanda]

Yes I think they probably are Lexi! I asked if the council if it was likely that I would get rehoused into a 2 bed after the baby is born and they said yes so told me just to hang on. I will be moved on the grounds of overcrowding....2 kids in a one bed flat is shocking in this day and age - guess there's not much council housing in Sussex? We have quite a lot in Sheffield but it's still hard to get unless you get assessed as priority by the council....

 

[cherelle]

i dont know anything about getting a council place? Me and OH having just sogned contract on a new flat but just out of interest how do you qualify for a council place? Do you have to be on benefits on earning under a certain amount? Sorry for my ignorance i just dont know! lol x

 

[pinkymum]

i dont know anything about getting a council place? Me and OH having just sogned contract on a new flat but just out of interest how do you qualify for a council place? Do you have to be on benefits on earning under a certain amount? Sorry for my ignorance i just dont know! lol x

I think in theory council housing is available to anyone. But the waiting lists can be a nightmare depending on where you are.

x

 

[flexilexi394]

Yeah anyone can put their names down, you just get categorised into priority, for example if homeless they would put you in a hostel toget re housed from there, pregnant and stuff get priority I think, income and marital status is what messes it up for me, as I have an income and a partner with an income, we aren't very high priority! Rubbish! Yeah I think Sussex must be pretty full. X

 

[midnight]

the council where i am does not discriminate against employed or unemployed you are equal we have just had to go on the council we currently own our home but cant afford the mortgage and with this being our 5th we need a 4 bed not because of the amount of kids though because of my ds disabilities he cant share a room with anybody so i have my ds in 1 room my 2 dd in another and my youngest ds in my room too which is risky as he climbs all over me, think we are going to have to put my ds in with my girls even though the eldest is above legal age to share a room with the oppisite sex but i have no choice really either risk my ds jumping on my belly or put him in with the girls we also stand to loose around 30k on the house we own im gutted that i have to leave it to be honest but with us struggling with the mortgage and not having enough room its the best option even though we have high points and are classed as high priorty with my ds disabilities we are still going to have to wait as they are no 4 bed houses so basically we will have to work with the special needs housing officer to see if a 3 bed can be adapted to a 4 bed or 2 houses knocked together or if a palour house comes up which basically mean there will be a bedroom downstairs or if by any luck someone gives up their 4 bed but i very much doubt it, worst thing is the housing officer said if you had applied a few months earlier we could of put you forward for a 6 bedroom new build but in a good way its good as the rent would be higher(i dont plan on staying on benefits) and i dont need 6 bedroom just a 4 bedroom will do in whatever shape or form it comes in

 

[amandapanda]

Yes 4 bed houses are the hardest to come by I think Midnight, well they are here anyway! Good luck though! Cherelle I think every council has different systems - anyone can get their name on the housing waiting list whether they are working or not - as long as you are happy to wait 10 years for a property! I was initially given a flat after I was made homeless by my private landlord and even then I had to fight for them to help me......but people being released from prison automatically get priority!!

As for my situation, my OH is now saying we should go private....he is terrified of how we will manage with a new baby and wants his mum to come live with us for a month or 2 to help us out so he is really keen for us to get into a 2 bed flat before the baby is born. We're going to talk about it some more this weekend......

 

[Mike]

Me and the mrs are having the same problems, they will not house us until after the birth so we are stuck in a mad house until then.

bloody goverment and there stupid rules!!!!!!!

 

[mumofmany]

when i had my 1st we were in a 1 bedroomed flat, then when i was pregnant they offered me a 3 bedroomed house i had been on the housing list for a few years by then , it was a bad area but needed the bigger spce so i took it, i went through a bad time and moved into my brothers 2 bedroomed flat for personnal reasons then when i had my 3rd we got a housing association house only because my husband had lived with his mum for years and he was classed as a tenant, then we were lucky someone offered us a swap they were council, so we are now in a 3 bedroomed house in a nice area, council have said that we should have 5 bedroomed house definately 4 but they just dont have any, I am happy where I am and dont want to move we have adapted our house now and built a studded wall in the big bedroom to make it 4 bedroomed now i am pregnant again me and hubby are going into the dining room to make it 5 bedroomed, i know we only need 4 but my eldest lad is 14 and shares with his 6 year old brother so thats why i wanted the extra room.

 

[midnight]

im lucky in a sense that because of ds disabilities i should get more help but i dont really hold out much hope of being in a new house before baby is born prob still be here next christmas lol i wont do private rented as my ds can be quite destructive sometimes and i dont thin private landlord would be quite understanding with us continuosly having to replace things plus the rent is rediculous

 

[pinkymum]

The only reason I got re-housed was because I was made homeless by a private landlord too. And I had to fight to get into temp homeless accomodation. But I've been lucky enough to get a two bedroom house. They're hard to come by up here! If I'd been in a bedsit or one bedroom house with the council I would have had to wait till baby was over 6 months. I've been really lucky and I'm really grateful!


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[pinkymum]

im lucky in a sense that because of ds disabilities i should get more help but i dont really hold out much hope of being in a new house before baby is born prob still be here next christmas lol i wont do private rented as my ds can be quite destructive sometimes and i dont thin private landlord would be quite understanding with us continuosly having to replace things plus the rent is rediculous

Sounds like a nightmare Hun! I didn't want to go private again because of what happened. Landlord had to sell due to finances. It just doesn't feel stable to me. X


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[amandapanda]

Is your new house private or Housing Association Pinky? The council gave me a list of HA's but nearly all of their waiting lists are closed. I'm very very wary of private landlords - my last one was a total bully who almost punched me once and grabbed my arms when I was taking pics of the state of the property that he had left.....have been really happy in council, they just leave you to it. Looks like I will get moved to a 2 bed after baby is born....just need to suffer for a few months....but OH is not keen so not sure what will happen.....

 

[flexilexi394]

I had a word with OH about all this council housing stuff, and he's being such an arse about it!! I want to put our names down together to get one, go about it properly. But he has this stupid mentality that we become frowned upon if we get council accommodation. He doesn't understand that it will help us out bigtime if we try and get a property, I dot know how to explain to him that it's not bad! We both work full time (well I'm on maternity leave now) and we can pay, we aren't on benefits or anything. He just doesn't get it!! Men!

 

[amandapanda]

I used to be a little snobbish about council housing Lexi - but now I'm in it I love it! The houses are generally bigger than private and are certainly alot cheaper - the council repair things quickly without apportioning blame and trying to get out of their responsibility of general upkeep like private landlords do! Maybe if he thinks council has a stigma to it, then try Housing Associations.....they have less big estates and often just have odd houses they buy in residential streets. I think in your circumstances you will get some good points....just depends on availability in your area.....good luck!

 

[pinkymum]

I had a word with OH about all this council housing stuff, and he's being such an arse about it!! I want to put our names down together to get one, go about it properly. But he has this stupid mentality that we become frowned upon if we get council accommodation. He doesn't understand that it will help us out bigtime if we try and get a property, I dot know how to explain to him that it's not bad! We both work full time (well I'm on maternity leave now) and we can pay, we aren't on benefits or anything. He just doesn't get it!! Men!

Does he think people will look down on you for getting a council house? Alot of older people I know who have mortgages have said they'd kill for some of the decent council houses.

Amanda, mine is council. I was on HA's lists but they're just isn't anything going. My first council offer was a flat in one of the most deprived areas in Aberdeen, I was really worried after that because it's not somewhere you'd let a dog live never mind bringing up a baby. So glad I refused it straight away as I wouldn't have gotten this one. It's a good area. Most of my neighbours have bought there houses which is always a good sign!


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[midnight]

some people are put off by council houses haha i dont know why though i loved living in council housing it was soooo easy id rather have to pay council rent that over 600 a month on my interst only mortgage it will soon be 800 eeeek