Council house offer on RAS Scheme

akally

Hello I have been offered a council house by letter last week
i signed it and handed it back
but im on the ras for the last 3 months?
Has this been a mistake on their part because id love the house its in a great place etc i haven't even seen inside it
can i really still get this house or will.they say o look ur already housed etc? thanks

fussyonion

What did the letter say?
You usually get a phone call. And it does seem unusual that you'd be offered a council home if you're on RAS.
One of the conditions of RAS is that you're deemed to be housed, so they remove you from the Housing List.

akally

fussyonion wrote: »

What did the letter say?
You usually get a phone call. And it does seem unusual that you'd be offered a council home if you're on RAS.
One of the conditions of RAS is that you're deemed to be housed, so they remove you from the Housing List.

It just said were offered the house gave the address etc a lot of forms to sign and hand back by ten days
and had to get the local post office to confirm what social welfare payment were getting etc
i rang twice to double check they received my form they did
and they never mentioned the ras
either did i. only because im.scared they'll withdraw. my landlord is gettin 100 under the table from me and were so broke between paying ras and landlord
at the time we were told ras was the best option and landlord wouldn't do it unless we agreed to give the 100
Seemed a good idea at the time but were only doing the ras 3 monthsi.hope i can argue the case That the council.would be saving in excess of 500 a month by giving us the council house and taking us off ras
im just terrified as im worried they will withdraw the offer

fussyonion

I am fairly sure they know you're on RAS BUT when you spoke to them on the phone, did you mention it?

akally

fussyonion wrote: »

I am fairly sure they know you're on RAS BUT when you spoke to them on the phone, did you mention it?

I didn't mention it because i genuinely thought it was all grand and normal until i mentioned to a friend
she.also thought perhaps a mistake? But i have other friends who said your just taken off the list because your no longer a priority but you can still be offered suitable accommodation if it.pops up
im getting very mixed responses and im worries we wont get it

fussyonion

Councils are aware of their tenants; whether they're in council homes, rented properties with allowance, RAS or ASH.

It IS unusual that you'd be offered a council home but if they are aware of your situation and they've still gone ahead with the offer, take it and don't look back.

akally

fussyonion wrote: »

Councils are aware of their tenants; whether they're in council homes, rented properties with allowance, RAS or ASH.

It IS unusual that you'd be offered a council home but if they are aware of your situation and they've still gone ahead with the offer, take it and don't look back.

thanks so much for replying
im a nervous wreck since last week
i can only hope and.pray it all goes grand
thanks again!

fussyonion

One more thing...you've signed papers.

DO NOT give up you RAS home yet UNTIL you've got confirmation of your new home.

What's the next step?
What are you waiting for now? What did the council say you had to do next?

akally

fussyonion wrote: »

One more thing...you've signed papers.

DO NOT give up you RAS home yet UNTIL you've got confirmation of your new home.

What's the next step?
What are you waiting for now? What did the council say you had to do next?

They said that a few family's had been offered homes in the area
and once all the signed papers are back from everyone (im guessing it'll be fairly quick) they all get handed over to the man who organises a tenant course basically we have to attend a course how to be a tenant and in charge of our own property as we won't be relying on a landlord etc and then the keys will be handed out
so she said in a week or two
im.worried ill get a letter Monday saying oops our mistake! carry on with ur ras house!

fussyonion

akally wrote: »

They said that a few family's had been offered homes in the area
and once all the signed papers are back from everyone (im guessing it'll be fairly quick) they all get handed over to the man who organises a tenant course basically we have to attend a course how to be a tenant and in charge of our own property as we won't be relying on a landlord etc and then the keys will be handed out
so she said in a week or two
im.worried ill get a letter Monday saying oops our mistake! carry on with ur ras house!

This sounds like Clúid, akally.

Clúid works alongside the council and they pick people off the housing list who are next to be housed, and they interview those people.
Whoever's suitable (or lucky) will get the house.
I didn't realise there were other people being sent the letters; I thought it was just you.

foggy_lad

akally wrote: »

Hello I have been offered a council house by letter last week
i signed it and handed it back
but im on the ras for the last 3 months?
Has this been a mistake on their part because id love the house its in a great place etc i haven't even seen inside it
can i really still get this house or will.they say o look ur already housed etc? thanks

You mention a course for tenants that you might have to go on, I wonder is this an actual council house you have been offered or a house belonging to one of the Voluntary housing associations around the country?

anyway AFAIK you are no longer entitled to be on the housing list when you move to the RAS scheme and the council will be aware that you are on the RAS scheme But they can still offer you a suitable house or flat if one becomes available.

Hope it goes well for you as having to pay out an extra €100/month is not just a scummy thing for the LL to be doing but also illegal as he will not be paying any taxes on that.

foggy_lad

fussyonion wrote: »

This sounds like Clúid, akally.

Clúid works alongside the council and they pick people off the housing list who are next to be housed, and they interview those people.
Whoever's suitable (or lucky) will get the house.
I didn't realise there were other people being sent the letters; I thought it was just you.

When they have a scheme of a dozen or so houses ready for occupation they pick people from the list to fill the houses plus a few extras in case the people on the list have to pull out or turn down the house, only those who are in line for a house are interviewed and fill out forms etc as it would not be fair to tell people to fill out all the forms if they were only on the subs bench.

akally

foggy_lad wrote: »

When they have a scheme of a dozen or so houses ready for occupation they pick people from the list to fill the houses plus a few extras in case the people on the list have to pull out or turn down the house, only those who are in line for a house are interviewed and fill out forms etc as it would not be fair to tell people to fill out all the forms if they were only on the subs bench.

sorry i.meant i am the only one offered this house
other fsmilys have been offered houses in different streets etc but in the same village i asked was i the only one offered this house the said yes and its effectively yours you signed the offer letter
so im very nervous they'll withdraw the offer if they see oh look your housed

The_Morrigan

OP I'm sorry, but you need to ring the council and lay out all the facts and let them know you are currently housed in a RAS house.
There is a serious housing crisis ongoing at the minute and you've ended up in two piles so to speak. Please do not omit telling them that you're in a RAS house just so you can take the offered house from them.

akally

Thanks for all your replies
ill deffinitly give them a ring tomorrow and set things straight

You've all been a wonderful help

Kelly06

Ras is a short term lease, a council house is permanent move. The Council should be aware that you have RAS accommodation after all they are paying the landlord and your application for the council housing list will be from that address. Depending on the agreement the council signed with your landlord they will either supply him with another tenant or end their agreement with him and he will exit the scheme.

Ring them to put your mind at rest if you like but more than likely they are well aware of the situation. Have you told your landlord , will they require notice from you?

akally

I have not told the landlord yet incase it falls through etc
hopefully they are aware of it and i haven't been offered a house only to have it taken away again.
I have yet to hear back from council regarding the next step (tenant course)

Kelly06

akally wrote: »

I have not told the landlord yet incase it falls through etc
hopefully they are aware of it and i haven't been offered a house only to have it taken away again.
I have yet to hear back from council regarding the next step (tenant course)

I think the pre tenant courses are literally the day or two before you sign the tenancy agreement and collect the keys, your Garda clearance will have to come back too.

What about ringing them to see how long it's going to take, make sure they have your acceptance form on file etc ?

akally

They have my acceptance form on file
the lady said it would be a week or two before were sent letters for the tenancy course date

akally

Oh and we both would have no problem with garda clearence we've never even got a ticket

Mrs OBumble

OP, you don't mention where you are located, but if it's outside Dublin and there is a new estate being opened up, or indeed a re-generation, then it's quite possible that they're finding it difficult to get enough people from the council list, so people in RAS housing may well be offered the place. This can particularly be the case if it's a place where differential rents don't apply, due to the way the build was funded.

Alternatively it's possible that the if a voluntary HA is in the mix, then they may have gotten a list of potential tenants from the council some months ago, before you went on to RAS.

You said you got a letter last week, and signed it and handed it back. Did you keep a copy (life-lesson for ya: ALWAYS keep a copy)? Who exactly was the letter from? If it's not the council, then you need to contact the council to clarify the situation.

akally

Its in limerick
its not re generation or a new build
its an old house
Unfortunately i didn't keep a copy which of course i should have . i just got so excited i quickly filled it out etc
it wasn't until a day or.two later i realised i should have kept a copy

Kelly06

akally wrote: »

Its in limerick
its not re generation or a new build
its an old house
Unfortunately i didn't keep a copy which of course i should have . i just got so excited i quickly filled it out etc
it wasn't until a day or.two later i realised i should have kept a copy

Ask them for a copy of it then !

Magicmatilda

ARe you sure it is the RAS scheme you are on and not rent supplement.

If you are on the RAS scheme, your landlord will have signed contracts directly with your local authority, therefore if you stop paying the extra 100, there is nothing he can do. Unless he wants to go and tell the LA that you have stopped paying hime but they won;t do anything about that as he shouldn;t be asking you for money. Most likely he will have signed his property over on a long term lease 5 years plus to the LA.

Rent Supplement would be different and a lot of people on that have to pay extra under the table to the landlord. In the case of Rent Supplement, the Landlord has entered into a contract with you.

akally

Im deffinitly with the RAS as i moved from.rent allowance to RAS in march
it gets reviewed each year but the contract is four years
so basically if i stop paying his 100 he will back out of RAS as it won't be "worth his while"

akally

so just an update
iv been invited to attend a pre tenancy course tomorrow with my husband
so far so good
hopefully will get keys soon

dremo

akally wrote: »

so just an update
iv been invited to attend a pre tenancy course tomorrow with my husband
so far so good
hopefully will get keys soon

Congratulations

Kelly06

Give your landlord his notice asap,congrats !

akally

Im gonna call him tomorrow as soon as im out of the course to fill him in on everything so he won't be left in the dark
hopefully i can start packing tomorrow iv no idea when the council.house payments start etc should know more tomorrow
i haven't even seen inside the house yet so no idea if any work has to be done
thank u all for your replys they have helped immensely

Kelly06

I think you sign your tenancy agreement and get your keys soon after the course. Your rent will be due straight away and is paid weekly to the council. There was a thread here recently and the same thing happened see here

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2057252105&page=2

zoom41

Hey, I know this is an old thread, but relevant to myself and I need some information.

I received a letter last week from fingal cc nominating me for a clúid home, someone here mentioned there would be a few interviewees for the one home, I'm wondering if this is true? As on the letter from fingal it says "this is your 1st offer of accommodation" my point is how can this be an offer if it's pretty much a lottery for the place? Given you only get two offers this would leave me in a precarious position as I could end up having my application suspended for a year after not truly been offered a place.

Thanks.