Buying Next Door to Social House

Ash.J.Williams · 17-09-2022 1:06pm

I only buy beside social houses , far more fun and generally more interesting

Former Former Former · 17-09-2022 6:01pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119630397#Comment_119630397

Again though, you're trying to make it out like this is a slight on ALL local authority tenants. It's not. If people want to buy their own council houses and maintain them, great. I'd love to live beside someone like that.

But that's not what is being discussed here. The council is not going to buy a house on the open market and then sell it at a huge discount to someone on the list. This house is going to be given to a tenant and after that it's the world's worst lottery as to who you get.

I laughed at your suggestion that some good areas started out as council houses. That's absolutely true. You neglected to mention that all the worst areas of the country also started out as council houses.

The reason this policy exists is because you can't put too many social tenants into one area. Why do you think that is, if they're all such pillars of society?

17-09-2022 6:40pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119631374#Comment_119631374

I do actually think it is a slight on all local authority tenants.

They are regularly tarred with the same brush here and spoken of as if somehow lesser than someone who managed to qualify for a mortage - as if thats some kind of indication of character.

And here's news for you, whenever any house goes up for sale, its a gamble who you're going to get living next door to you.

Don't delude yourself that because someone qualifed for a mortgage, that they're going to somehow be better or nicer neighbours. If someone is going to be a bad neighbour, they'll be a bad neighbour because of who they are, not whether they own the house or are renting it.

Former Former Former · 17-09-2022 10:31pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119631497#Comment_119631497

Correct. But if you have to take a gamble, then take the gamble with the better odds.

18-09-2022 1:39am

The odds of finding somewhere that is not within close proximity of a social house / social housing now is very low, no matter where you buy.

The very policies you mentioned yourself make sure of that, and they are not going to change any time soon.

Graces7 · 18-09-2022 7:18am

May I please put in a word here as someone who has been and is a council tenant?

It can be an arduous and lengthy task getting essential repairs and maintenance done when you rent from the council.. if they get done at all. The council does not look after its properties as private landlords do

AND. more relevant, the lack of any real checks/inspections.

And of course this can and does get taken advantage of. By some who would not last in a private rental.

Would I buy or rent next to a social tenant? Well no but then after some ....interesting... years renting I would not rent or buy with ANY close neighbours... The private folk tend to be as bad.

Former Former Former · 18-09-2022 11:42am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119632706#Comment_119632706

"Welcome to Russian Roulette. Would you like this gun with one bullet or this gun with five bullets?"

"Sure it's all the same, give me the five bullets"

18-09-2022 12:34pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119633373#Comment_119633373

Your analogy doesn't work unless you consider 100% of social housing tenants to be bad neighbours.

But I think you've made it very clear already that that is your true opinion.

Nothing left to be said here, so you can go ahead and have the last word, as you seem to desperately need it.

Former Former Former · 18-09-2022 1:09pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119633555#Comment_119633555

You're obviously personally and emotionally invested in this so apologies if I offended you or think I'm describing you, but you are deliberately misrepresenting my position.

To summarise, again. The probability of having a nightmare neighbour is massively higher if they're a social housing tenant compared to an owner occupier. There's simply no other way to put it.

That does not mean all social housing tenants are bad nor does it mean all owner occupiers are great.

But basic facts should mean the OP either runs a mile or goes back and asks for a heavy, heavy discount.

Graces7 · 18-09-2022 1:23pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119633373#Comment_119633373

I keep forgetting that I am a social tenant... But out here on a small island with no neighbours...

18-09-2022 1:31pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119633704#Comment_119633704

The only personal investment I have in this, is that I have no tolerance for prejudice against people who can't afford to buy a home.

I grew up in social housing, (as did a lot of my generation) yet went on to become an owner occupier.

However, many owner occupiers like myself have adult children who can't get on the property ladder and may end up as social housing tenants at some point.

So what kind of bullets are we/they in your game of Neighbours Russian Roulette ?

ballyharpat · 18-09-2022 1:48pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119633785#Comment_119633785

You seen to have a terrible chip on your shoulder. Perhaps take a deep breath. Youve given your opinion.

Ypuve also gone ahead and attacked a number of people for their opinions. This is a forum, everyone has and is entitled to an opinion, you do not have to agree with them.

Uour opinion holds as much weight as anyone elses, but the majority are not in agreement with your opinion.

Acceptance is the key.

18-09-2022 2:42pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119633839#Comment_119633839

"Acceptance is key"... maybe share that little nugget with those who want to exclude any social housing in close proximity to their "assets"?

There are no chips on my shoulders. Why is putting up a strong argument and defending your opinion always considered "an attack"? Is what you have just posted here not an attack on me? I have given my opinion, and will continue to do so.

Feel free to use the ignore function, if my opinion so offends you that you needed to post an attack on me for it. That's what its for.

dontmindme · 18-09-2022 4:44pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119634061#Comment_119634061

You seem to not be able to accept the fact that in the vast majority of people's opinion, the odds of a bad neighbour increase with a socially housed tenant. This has nothing to do with any one particular tenant and indeed yes you can get the neighbour from hell who owns their property as well, but the odds of getting someone who cares not a jot about the property they live in or its environs is greater with social housing. These are the perceived facts as most people would see them and unless there is some study to prove otherwise this would be taken as general consensus. Keep disagreeing all you like.

18-09-2022 5:03pm

I will.

And I'll keep calling it out as the prejudice it is.

Ush1 · 18-09-2022 5:40pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119634476#Comment_119634476

I don't think anyone is denying it's a prejudice?

Scotty # · 19-09-2022 10:31am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119634476#Comment_119634476

It's not prejudice if ones opinion is formed from actual experience, as is the case throughout this thread. The OP asked for people's advice based on their experience. That's what people have given. If those experiences have been mostly negative, well then, that's just the way it is.

As I said earlier, I've lived beside social for around 12 years, the first 6 were great, the last 6 have been hell. We've decided to move and as soon as the right house comes along we're out of here!

19-09-2022 11:02am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119634581#Comment_119634581

Which makes it even worse.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119636639#Comment_119636639

There is more than one definition of prejudice - in particular pay attention to the verb...

But sure, don't let that get in your way of talking people out of buying a house they've fallen in love with because of who the neighbours might be.

19-09-2022 11:38am

Like a dog with a bone. Its been agreed that not all social tenants are bad but its been pointed out that generally areas with higher levels of social housing have more social issues, as a result living beside a social house brings a higher risk of having social issues on your door step. Its not a slight against all social tenants but there are plenty that do cause issues and if the OP had to ask the original question they obviously have doubts. The OP is free to purchase where they like but based on experience I would not like to be attached to a social house. In the accommodation thread the quantity of social housing in new build estates is becoming a more common question, if there were no issues with social housing I doubt so many would be asking. Its a pity that it is an issue, but there are some social tenants that have nothing to loose as the state provides their income/house and they are free to act as they will.

19-09-2022 11:47am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058261899/buying-next-door-to-social-house

So did you buy the house?

19-09-2022 12:58pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119636899#Comment_119636899

Yet they've been described by one poster as all five bullets in a game of russian roulette with only five bullets. Nothing general about that.

That reveals the true mindset and attitude towards social tenants, which is very common on this forum.

It's an ingrained prejudice, and a very unfair one.

There are plenty of examples of bad neighbours who are private owners as well, yet no one worries in advance about the neighbours if the house next door is privately owned.

19-09-2022 2:11pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119637237#Comment_119637237

You appear to be getting quite upset by people providing their opinions, this is an open forum for people to discuss their views and experiences. Nobody has said social tenants should not be housed, nothing said on this forum is going to impact social tenants.

The OP is about to take probably the biggest financial risk they will ever make, being a semi-detached house the neighbors have the potential to have a huge impact on the OPs enjoyment of this property and the future resale value of the property. When spending that kind of money you evaluate all risks, if there were social or owner occupier neighbors currently in situ and they were not looking after their property or making a lot of noise during viewings you would think twice about buying it. The issue here is the house is unoccupied the OP knows it will be social housing, in my experience and the experience of others on the forum there is a higher risk that the OP will be buying into future problems, there are also people on this forum that don't agree with that and everybody's experience will be different. At the end of the day the OP is free to determine the risk to them and if they decide to purchase the house I hope it works out for them and they have many happy years in that house.

You keep trying to bat down peoples advice by saying its prejudice, its not its just another opinion to yours and one you clearly don't like. I like other posters have stated that there are good and bad social tenants and most posters that have provided an opinion/advice have backed it up with personal experiences. Its a pity that the bad social tenants have such a negative impact on society that it makes home purchasers have to think twice about buying beside a social house but that's the world we live in.

Former Former Former · 19-09-2022 2:58pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119637237#Comment_119637237

Yet they've been described by one poster as all five bullets in a game of russian roulette with only five bullets.

I thought it was pretty obvious that this was an analogy that, even if you cannot have certainty, you can give yourself a much better probability of a good outcome. You knew that, and when someone's only contribution is wilfully and repeatedly misrepresenting the other person's argument, that's the surest sign they know they're wrong but just can't admit it.

You are advocating that since you cannot have no bullets, you might as well have five. That's your entire argument. And you want the OP to spend hundreds of thousands of euro on the heavy gun. It's madness.

You're personally affronted because, as a former council tenant, you don't think we should be saying mean things about any of them. Fair enough, but it doesn't change the facts. If you did grow up in a council estate, you'll know all about the social problems that can arise due to problem neighbours.

Political correctness and indignant self-righteousness is all well and good when someone else is paying for it.

When it's your own money and your own family home, you need to live in the real world.

19-09-2022 5:08pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119637596#Comment_119637596

I'm actually not upset at all. I don't know why you assume that.

But for someone who says "this is an open forum for people to discuss their views and experiences" - why does my opinion bother you so much? Why are you, a relatively new poster, jumping in at this stage of the thread to try and bat me down?

Stop wasting your time. It won't happen.

It is prejudice. I posted the definition of it above. Clearly it being pointed out is something YOU don't like, but that's not my problem.

19-09-2022 5:20pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119637882#Comment_119637882

That analogy was a massive freudian slip on your part that you're now trying to explain away will more (bad) analogies.

For the record, I was never a council tenant. My parents were council tenants. I am an owner occupier in a private estate in a house I paid for. I've also mentioned this several times.

I saw problems in council estates growing up, but I've also see them in private estates caused by private owners - that gets brushed under the carpet on these threads.

I now have council tenants as neighbours and there are no issues, and everyone just gets on with it. That's the real world I live in.

rob316 · 19-09-2022 5:45pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119632855#Comment_119632855

Your missing the point here and I said previously I was a council tenant. You are at a far higher risk of getting some really bad neighbors living next to a council owned house.

Here is a real world example. A friend lives in a private estate their is 3 council properties on the row, my friend lives in one, the other are lovely people and the 3rd lives the daughter of the most known drug family in the city. That is the sort of caliber of neighbor you could get on your doorstep.

laoisgem · 19-09-2022 5:52pm

I don't think it's so much about council tenants but more so the area.

19-09-2022 6:41pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119638618#Comment_119638618

It's a decent area and the estate is generally fine. Mostly older people and families with kids.

laoisgem · 19-09-2022 6:43pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119638780#Comment_119638780

Then I personally wouldn't hesitate but that's just me and my opinion.

Graces7 · 19-09-2022 7:12pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119638596#Comment_119638596

Actually YOU are the one missing the point, because you are so adamant that you cannot see the bigger picture. I am maybe one of th eoldest here with a wide range of housing experience. The worst neighbours I ever had were those who owned their very nice houses and thought that gave them the right to snub incomers who did not fit their image of what a neighbour should be. I did not. I never had . such issues in poorer areas of council housing. I met some truly wonderful folk. Luck of the draw in both situations? So no categorical prejudice please. I take as I find.

Buying Next Door to Social House

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