Council housing

Bogglingbrenda

Hi guys ,
I'm currently on the housing list and had a phonecall from council for a meeting next week

I'm confused as to what to expect. They didn't say what it was about . But did ask questions like , how many children ,genders, and do they have any special needs ect .

Would anyone happen to know what this could be about ?

Thanks

wifey28

sounds like they are maybe about to offer you a home, or atleast check you out to see if youd be suitable to a home that has come vacant.
They usually only call people to meetings for this reason, they like to confirm everythign and will likely as for proof of income, kids etc as well to ensure your still entitled

Bogglingbrenda

wifey28 wrote: »

sounds like they are maybe about to offer you a home, or atleast check you out to see if youd be suitable to a home that has come vacant.
They usually only call people to meetings for this reason, they like to confirm everythign and will likely as for proof of income, kids etc as well to ensure your still entitled

Thanks for your reply .
I received a letter today which says
"You are invited to attend a meeting to discuss your social housing application with our housing liaison officer .

It is very important that you make every effort to attend this meeting in order to progress your application for social housing support . If you do not attend or contact us to rearrange the meeting ,this will be considered a refusal and you will be suspended for a period of 12 months from the date of this appointment . Furthermore the period of suspension will not subsequently count for "time on the list " purposes "

wifey28

Bogglingbrenda wrote: »

Thanks for your reply .
I received a letter today which says
"You are invited to attend a meeting to discuss your social housing application with our housing liaison officer .

It is very important that you make every effort to attend this meeting in order to progress your application for social housing support . If you do not attend or contact us to rearrange the meeting ,this will be considered a refusal and you will be suspended for a period of 12 months from the date of this appointment . Furthermore the period of suspension will not subsequently count for "time on the list " purposes "

def sounds like they are making you an offer , congrats

ShaShaBear

wifey28 wrote: »

def sounds like they are making you an offer , congrats

Just on this, we got letters like this a few times a year on the list and were never offered accommodation - we were told its to check people's eligibility to remain on the housing list firstly by getting up-to-date information on applicants who may have increased/decreased income, more/less household applicants or who may have moved house and be taking a place on the list that doesn't apply to them. It most certainly doesn't mean a housing offer is imminent.

Gatling

ShaShaBear wrote: »

Just on this, we got letters like this a few times a year on the list and were never offered accommodation - we were told its to check people's eligibility to remain on the housing list firstly by getting up-to-date information on applicants who may have increased/decreased income, more/less household applicants or who may have moved house and be taking a place on the list that doesn't apply to them. It most certainly doesn't mean a housing offer is imminent.

This is actually quite common

Bogglingbrenda

Thanks for all your comments .
My housing application was only recently updated a couple of weeks ago .

Bogglingbrenda

Just an update , Had the meeting was . it was indeed an offer , thanks to everyone who replied

wifey28

Bogglingbrenda wrote: »

Just an update , Had the meeting was . it was indeed an offer , thanks to everyone who replied

fantastic!

Bogglingbrenda

Bogglingbrenda wrote: »

Just an update , Had the meeting was . it was indeed an offer , thanks to everyone who replied

How long were you on the housing list congrats OP

Bogglingbrenda

Deleted User wrote: »

How long were you on the housing list congrats OP

Thanks , been on the list 7 years

Bogglingbrenda

Bogglingbrenda wrote: »

Thanks , been on the list 7 years

I’ve along way to go so I’m on it 3 years in January

Good luck to you and your family in your new home

wifey28

Deleted User wrote: »

I’ve along way to go so I’m on it 3 years in January

Good luck to you and your family in your new home

Depends on where in the country you live and what kind of home you require too, i know eople in cork on the list 15 years

Gatling

wifey28 wrote: »

Depends on where in the country you live and what kind of home you require too, i know eople in cork on the list 15 years

The average wait across the country is between 10 -12 years ,most people over that have either refused properties or were off the list and got put back on ,
There has been numerous reports in the media on how long people have been waiting

ShaShaBear

Gatling wrote: »

The average wait across the country is between 10 -12 years ,most people over that have either refused properties or were off the list and got put back on ,
There has been numerous reports in the media on how long people have been waiting

Correct, we were on the list for 5 years and got offered a house, and were taken off when they discovered our WFP took us €500 over the limit for eligibility. Back on the list now again after husband was let go due to downsizing

Gatling

ShaShaBear wrote: »

Correct, we were on the list for 5 years and got offered a house, and were taken off when they discovered our WFP took us €500 over the limit for eligibility. Back on the list now again after husband was let go due to downsizing

Sorry to hear Shasha .

Hopefully something comes around again

Minnie41

A colleague has told me that he will is hoping to get a council house because he cannot afford to save the deposit for a house. He is separated and has part time access to his 3 children. They had to hand the family home back to the bank as they couldn't sell it but it is now sold. This person is on €50,000 plus per annum, he lives in a quiet part of the country where houses are more available. I really can't see how he could apply or does anyone know is it possible?

Gatling

Minnie41 wrote: »

This person is on €50,000 plus per annum, he lives in a quiet part of the country where houses are more available. I really can't see how he could apply or does anyone know is it possible?

Not a hope on 50k pa


You also have to have an actual long term need of housing it's not a simple case of applying and be given somewhere you want

splinter65

Minnie41 wrote: »

A colleague has told me that he will is hoping to get a council house because he cannot afford to save the deposit for a house. He is separated and has part time access to his 3 children. They had to hand the family home back to the bank as they couldn't sell it but it is now sold. This person is on €50,000 plus per annum, he lives in a quiet part of the country where houses are more available. I really can't see how he could apply or does anyone know is it possible?

On nearly €1000 per week in a quiet part of the country where rents are low then he will be refused the place on the housing list as he can afford to pay his own rent.

Minnie41

Thanks, I thought it was a bit crazy alright.

youandme13

ShaShaBear wrote: »

Correct, we were on the list for 5 years and got offered a house, and were taken off when they discovered our WFP took us €500 over the limit for eligibility. Back on the list now again after husband was let go due to downsizing

Can I ask were you just told to go after being over the threshold? Do then it makes no sense to get any extra money that will bring you a few euro over! Can they just say ok you're over limit now .. thanks and sorry to hear what happened to you 😣

ShaShaBear

youandme13 wrote: »

Can I ask were you just told to go after being over the threshold? Do then it makes no sense to get any extra money that will bring you a few euro over! Can they just say ok you're over limit now .. thanks and sorry to hear what happened to you ��

Yep, we handed in the forms and got a phonecall 2 days later to tell us we were over the limit and we were no longer eligible for the house we were offered or any other house. We were taken off the list immediately and forced to reapply from the beginning once my partner was made redundant :rolleyes:

youandme13

ShaShaBear wrote: »

Yep, we handed in the forms and got a phonecall 2 days later to tell us we were over the limit and we were no longer eligible for the house we were offered or any other house. We were taken off the list immediately and forced to reapply from the beginning once my partner was made redundant :rolleyes:

If you don't mind me asking, had you already moved in to the house?

wifey28

youandme13 wrote: »

If you don't mind me asking, had you already moved in to the house?

They check your means before they give you the keys to have your rent calculated before you move in

youandme13

wifey28 wrote: »

They check your means before they give you the keys to have your rent calculated before you move in

Thanks Wifey28 but I meant if circumstances change a few weeks or months after you move in and then it's over the threshold. . What would happen?

wifey28

youandme13 wrote: »

Thanks Wifey28 but I meant if circumstances change a few weeks or months after you move in and then it's over the threshold. . What would happen?

Youd be paying more rent, or might be encouraged to being buying the house if your means change significantly
They retest meaans every year in some localities or longer in others so always ensure you are paying the correct level of rent for your income

youandme13

wifey28 wrote: »

Youd be paying more rent, or might be encouraged to being buying the house if your means change significantly
They retest meaans every year in some localities or longer in others so always ensure you are paying the correct level of rent for your income

Thanks a mill!

Would they evict you If you went over

If on future a partner or something moved in and the joint incomes becomes over what would be likely to happen

wifey28

youandme13 wrote: »

Thanks a mill!

Would they evict you If you went over

If on future a partner or something moved in and the joint incomes becomes over what would be likely to happen

No they dont evict you, just have you pay more rent, or if for eg you both got jobs and were suddenly on 100k a year they would prob talk to you about beginning to then buy the house from them and pay off a mortgage, then now encourge all tennets to beginbuying the porperty which you are eligible to do after 12 months

youandme13

wifey28 wrote: »

No they dont evict you, just have you pay more rent, or if for eg you both got jobs and were suddenly on 100k a year they would prob talk to you about beginning to then buy the house from them and pay off a mortgage, then now encourge all tennets to beginbuying the porperty which you are eligible to do after 12 months

Thank you very much for that!

It's put my mind at ease I was afraid you'd just get evicted and have nowhere then.

LuciX

youandme13 wrote: »

Would they evict you If you went over
If on future a partner or something moved in and the joint incomes becomes over what would be likely to happen

You live together now but you are on the housing list as a sole applicant :eek:

Stop scamming the system :mad:

youandme13

LuciX wrote: »

You live together now but you are on the housing list as a sole applicant :eek:

Stop scamming the system :mad:

I'm not. I love with family so am a sole applicant I'm not scamming it 😞

Dude89

youandme13 wrote: »

I'm not. I love with family so am a sole applicant I'm not scamming it 😞

Funny another account asking the same question on a different thread.

sallyanne12

A few questions I have about social housing
-are the houses generally all grouped together or do the council housing occupants live beside people who own their own homes? Like is it mostly council housing estates?
-if you get a council house and start saving money each month and manage to save a large sum over many years e.g. €100,000, would u still be entitled to the council house? Would u have to pay more for it or not? I mean if your earnings stay the same but you're just sensible with money and save instead of spend?!
-if you die, can your children inherit the house or does it always belong to the state? Im assuming it belongs to the state.
-if you buy the house, I understand you buy it at a reduced rate. But let's say the house is worth €400,000 and you buy for €200,000, can you resell it for €400,000?
-do you get to keep staying in the house if you get a new job and your income increases to €50,000 from €30,000 ?
-what percent of your income do you pay as rent?
-if you lose your job and have no income what happens your house? Or if you get cut from social welfare what happens your house?
-can you stay in a council house while you save for a mortgage in future?
-which area has the nicest council houses to apply for?

Sorry for all the questions I'm enquiring for a friend in a bad situation

wifey28

sallyanne12 wrote: »

A few questions I have about social housing
-are the houses generally all grouped together or do the council housing occupants live beside people who own their own homes? Like is it mostly council housing estates?
-if you get a council house and start saving money each month and manage to save a large sum over many years e.g. €100,000, would u still be entitled to the council house? Would u have to pay more for it or not? I mean if your earnings stay the same but you're just sensible with money and save instead of spend?!
-if you die, can your children inherit the house or does it always belong to the state? Im assuming it belongs to the state.
-if you buy the house, I understand you buy it at a reduced rate. But let's say the house is worth €400,000 and you buy for €200,000, can you resell it for €400,000?
-do you get to keep staying in the house if you get a new job and your income increases to €50,000 from €30,000 ?
-what percent of your income do you pay as rent?
-if you lose your job and have no income what happens your house? Or if you get cut from social welfare what happens your house?
-can you stay in a council house while you save for a mortgage in future?
-which area has the nicest council houses to apply for?

Sorry for all the questions I'm enquiring for a friend in a bad situation

1 - Pretty much all new builds are part of council estates, these maybe added onto an existing private estate in some cases, but even then they are kinda an estate on their own. For eg our house is 3 years old, it is in the back of an existing private estate, but they see us as a separate entity, there is maybe 200 private houses and 55 council ones at the back of the estate, they are very obviously not the same also as ours are plain white and smaller than the pebble dashed private homes which are a different model.



2 - After 12 months of renting a council home you are then eligible to begin buying said home, you get a discount on the buy value depending on your income, I think its 40/50/60% . You are then paying a mortgage to the council instead of rent. But there are limitations on when you can sell and how long you need to reside there etc, you can check these buy googling buy council house


3 - If an adult child is living with you, after a few years you can add them to the lease, if they have been on the lease for 5 years i believe when you die and actually reside in the house they may then be entitled to rent it from the council in their own capacity (Im unsure what the rules are surrounding this) But typically if you die the council take the house back if this is not the case, unless you do the whole buying scheme


4 - There are strict rules on reselling the house and i believe you need to offer it to the council at the reduced rate first in many of those. And for a number of years you need to get the councils permission to even sell it.



5 - If your income increases over the duration of your life/tenancy then you inform your council and your rent increases accordingly


6 - if you google your local councils rent rates it will give you the breakdown of the system they use to determine rent. But it is nothing like private renting!



7 - In most cases when you lose a job you are entitled to some sort of welfare, in this case again you notify the council and they drop your rent to he lowest level based on the number of people in the house, however if you have a grown child they can take their income into account for rent also. If at any point you stop paying the rent the council have the right to evict you



8 - Staying in a council house and saving for a mortgage kinda defeats the purpose of having the council house, which is generally for family's who cannot afford to save for a mortgage, if your income is so high that you can afford to save and get a mortgage then it is unlikely you would qualify for social housing, for eg in cork the income limit for a couple is only 36.5k a year


9 - There really is no area nicer than another. That is something you need to decide on your own really

sallyanne12

Thank you SO much for your reply. I really appreciate you taking the time to help me!!
You really answered all my queries.
Without sounding snobby, would ther be a lot of rough people around or is it generally a safe place to live in the council houses? Thanks again

wifey28

sallyanne12 wrote: »

Thank you SO much for your reply. I really appreciate you taking the time to help me!!
You really answered all my queries.
Without sounding snobby, would ther be a lot of rough people around or is it generally a safe place to live in the council houses? Thanks again

People are thoroughly screened before being offered houses, if theyve got convictions or asbos they are less likely to be given a home.

I was apprehensive at the thought of a whole housing estate, but tbh weve been super lucky, all our neighbors are lovely and weve not had a single issue in 3 years.


And a few of the people have already began the transition to the buying scheme, were trying to work towards it ourselves atm

Caranica

sallyanne12 wrote: »

-which area has the nicest council houses to apply for?

Sorry for all the questions I'm enquiring for a friend in a bad situation

This final question makes it look like your friend is a new applicant. They need to be aware of the seriousness of the housing situation, some people are waiting over 10 years on the list. If they're in a bad situation, they may get higher up the list but the waits can still be very lengthy.

sallyanne12

Would everyone in the estate know you’re in a council house or is it not obvious who is and who isn’t?

If you get the council house and at that time only 1 of the couple is working, but a few years later the other starts working and now you have 2 incomes, would you have to leave the house or would rent just increase? It’s confusing because if you applied in that case you would be refused, so why do they allow you stay?

And in the case you are allowed stay in the council house and you save up for a mortgage to buy a different house, would the bank decline or would having a council house go against you in any way?

ShaShaBear

sallyanne12 wrote: »

Would everyone in the estate know you’re in a council house or is it not obvious who is and who isn’t?

If you get the council house and at that time only 1 of the couple is working, but a few years later the other starts working and now you have 2 incomes, would you have to leave the house or would rent just increase? It’s confusing because if you applied in that case you would be refused, so why do they allow you stay?

And in the case you are allowed stay in the council house and you save up for a mortgage to buy a different house, would the bank decline or would having a council house go against you in any way?

Chances are other people would know that your house is council - if it is not a new build, most people are familiar with the owned houses versus council-owned. They cannot remove you from the property simply because an additional income is going in. Your rent will go up depending on how much additional income is going in, but that is it.

As for a mortgage, I couldn't say if it would go against you, but it would be very poor form to enter into a council house on a single income if you were expecting a second person to suddenly happen upon an additional income that would facilitate a mortgage. As was already said, the purpose of council accommodation (and mortgages to buy said accommodation directly from the council) are intended for people who would not find themselves in that position.

Geuze

sallyanne12 wrote: »

If you get the council house and at that time only 1 of the couple is working, but a few years later the other starts working and now you have 2 incomes, would you have to leave the house or would rent just increase? It’s confusing because if you applied in that case you would be refused, so why do they allow you stay?

If household income rises, then the rent rises.

There is a TD who is a social housing tenant.

One of the main reasons for social housing arrears is tenants not telling the council of higher incomes, and then owing back rent.

Scotty #

Geuze wrote: »

If household income rises, then the rent rises.

There is a TD who is a social housing tenant.

One of the main reasons for social housing arrears is tenants not telling the council of higher incomes, and then owing back rent.

The MAXIMUM rent per week is €21 per person with a household max of €84 per week.

So two adults earning €80k each per annum will pay a max rent of €42/week.

Dublin City council Rates 2019 - other councils may vary.

laoisgem

I'm paying €93 a week in rent. I'm a lone parent with 3 children, although the eldest is working atm. The younger two are still my dependents. I'm earning less than 25k a year. I queried it as to why they are basing it on my gross weekly earning and not my net take home but to no avail. They haven't even taken childcare costs into consideration for my youngest.

Gatling

laoisgem wrote: »

I'm paying €93 a week in rent. I'm a lone parent with 3 children, although the eldest is working atm. The younger two are still my dependents. I'm earning less than 25k a year. I queried it as to why they are basing it on my gross weekly earning and not my net take home but to no avail. They haven't even taken childcare costs into consideration for my youngest.

Who's your local authority

laoisgem

Gatling wrote: »

Who's your local authority

Laois

Gatling

laoisgem wrote: »

Laois

Sounds high but it could be based on house size Vs income ie 1,2,3,4 bed

laoisgem

Gatling wrote: »

Sounds high but it could be based on house size Vs income ie 1,2,3,4 bed

When I appealed it the only response I got was;

Laois county council has considered an appeal of your rent increase and the decision is as follows, your rent will be increased to €93 in two stages.

Like ffs, they're still increasing it just staggering the increase.

It's a basic 3 bedroom semi detached and there is 4 of us here, I share my bedroom with the smallest so the older 2 can have a bedroom each for some privacy.

Scotty #

Rent in Laois is calculated at 22% of your gross income capped at a maximum of €93 for a 3 bed house.

So, if you earn over €21,981 per year then your rent should be €93/week.

https://laois.ie/departments/housing/social-housing/

Jacovs

Scotty # wrote: »

The MAXIMUM rent per week is €21 per person with a household max of €84 per week.

So two adults earning €80k each per annum will pay a max rent of €42/week.

Dublin City council Rates 2019 - other councils may vary.

That is for subsidiary earners.

For the primary earner it is 15% of weekly assessable income.

So in your example, a couple on 80k each would pay about €250 per week.

Rose92C

Hi I’m sorry to jump in to this conversation so late but I also had a meeting with council two weeks ago. I was just asked some general questions and then I was told that I have been guarda checked and that everything was perfect. I was told if I am successful with one of these particular houses I should receive a registered letter in the post by end of the month. As of yet I have not received a letter and I am just very anxious and not sleeping. Does anyone know how long after a meeting should a letter arrive and also is there certain days they send out this registered letter ? I appreciate any help you can give me thank you

Rose92C

@wifey28 maybe this is a silly question but how long after a meeting should you expect to receive an offer letter ? I am now in the same situation myself and checking the post everyday. Also is there certain days they send these registered letters ? Thank you I haven’t really been sleeping since my meeting