Reply to: Bedroom tax

[seanraaron]

I think part of the problem with the bedroom tax is that it's applied blindly and a lot of newer properties are rather creative in their definition of what a "bedroom" is, so I'm sympathetic to people who are being squeezed further when there's been so much regressive tax policy over the past fifteen years with binning lower tax brackets and such.

I'm renting a two-bed flat with the other bedroom being for my daughter on the two-three nights a week she's with me, but I could use an extra bedroom for guests/storage. I can see situations where people could end up with an extra bedroom and not be taking the piss.

After being made redundant I could not believe how crap statutory redundancy pay is. Surprising that more people aren't on JSA or moved into social housing, really. I'm just glad I scored a contract job quickly enough to not see how long it would take me to end up on JSA and have to move!

[The Spartan]

LOL. Spartie mun you can't have a dig at your mother!

why not she owes me a childhood

[psychocandy]

My Mum lives in a rented HA property and she has recently had a new boiler and radiators installed along with a new kitchen and flooring etc none of which came at any expense to her. She's never had to pay for anything in all the time she's been at council or HA properties, it's probably why she has such a large amount of disposable income to spunk away on alcohol and bingo.

LOL. Spartie mun you can't have a dig at your mother!

[MrMarkyMark]

FTFY

Coming from the welsh valleys, I am constantly amazed that I can get a job, then quit the job, pay out all my dividends, then go on JSA etc.

[psychocandy]

While I agree with the subsidy removal, it still seems a bit tough for someone to be thrown out of their family home after 25 years, as could happen.

They dont get thrown out though do they? They just get told they'll be getting less towards paying it.

I agree its caused a problem because they should never have been able to live there for free that long.

[psychocandy]

You've talked about your brother in law, before.
Can I ask, are all your family on the dole?

Maybe, its genetic and you are affected, less than most

Brother this is. He normally works but has spells on the dole.

Two nephews however are lazy sods who never intend to work.

This is south wales though. Its not uncommon for people to be without work. There are genuine cases too.

I appreciate other parts of the country are not like this. Years ago I did my sandwich year in college working in Newbury, Berks (a fairly affluent part of the country).

Coming from the welsh valleys I was amazed that everyone could get a job, do what they want, quit jobs, get another one easily etc.

[The Spartan]

Not forgetting that repairs to the property are free and any refurbishment is free, unlike with BTLs were you've got more chance of your rent going down that having any work done to the rental cash cow

My Mum lives in a rented HA property and she has recently had a new boiler and radiators installed along with a new kitchen and flooring etc none of which came at any expense to her. She's never had to pay for anything in all the time she's been at council or HA properties, it's probably why she has such a large amount of disposable income to spunk away on alcohol and bingo.

[SueEllen]

It is, housing association 3 bed terrace with a car space garden £127 a week.
Council House 3 bed 1960's semi with suitable garden £75

2 bed flat £800/month.

Higher Earners To Lose Thousands In Social Housing Subsidy | Welfare Weekly

Bob Crowe was > £150k and paid £340 rent.

watch the BMWs & Mercs outside the council houses.

Housing association properties are not the same as council housing.

While they both are social housing:
1. You can't do shared ownership (yet) with council housing.
2.The rules of inheriting the tenancy are completely different as in your can't with housing association properties.
3. The rules on taking in lodgers are different. Councils will turn a blind eye as long as the tenant(s) are living there, but housing associations won't.*
etc.

This means if you can get a council house you and your family are onto a winner even if you never buy it, but if you get a housing association property while you personally are lucky your descendants aren't.

Council houses where built when land and housing were cheaper but housing association's land was purchased at modern prices. So councils, at least where I am, charge less for rent than housing associations.

*Council tenants will happily tell you all the rules there as housing association tenants won't unless they are moaning about their landlord or offering you a cheap place to lodge.

[vetran]

The rent isn't subsidised though unless they are on benefits..

It is, housing association 3 bed terrace with a car space garden £127 a week.
Council House 3 bed 1960's semi with suitable garden £75

2 bed flat £800/month.

Higher Earners To Lose Thousands In Social Housing Subsidy | Welfare Weekly

Bob Crowe was > £150k and paid £340 rent.

watch the BMWs & Mercs outside the council houses.

[SueEllen]

The rent isn't subsidised though unless they are on benefits.

In lots of cases councils got the land or buildings cheaper than what they would have got it on the market at that time. Even if it was at market rates then it would still cost a lot less then to build housing today.

I still have relations who are near the end of paying off their mortgages in London and the amount they pay is way far less than to rent a room in a shared house in a scummy part of the SE let alone London.

[MicrosoftBob]

It might seem tough but as they had a subsidised rent for 25 years paid for by people earning less than them it seems more than fair.

average weekly rental £78.8 a week / £320 month for all council properties seems a little low compared to market rents of £841.

https://www.gov.uk/government/statis...ancies#history

https://www.gov.uk/government/statis...s-england-only

I used to quite like drinking in my local because it was cheap & convenient, after years of patronage it was converted into housing. Should I have jumped up & down or just realised that things change? Because I was a client not the owner I would have no part in the decision.

Not forgetting that repairs to the property are free and any refurbishment is free, unlike with BTLs were you've got more chance of your rent going down that having any work done to the rental cash cow

[vetran]

Ok. While I agree with the subsidy removal, it still seems a bit tough for someone be thrown out of the home where they established their family, after 25 years.

Mind you, my wife and I are thinking of moving into an apartment and giving the house (we own) to the kids.

It might seem tough but as they had a subsidised rent for 25 years paid for by people earning less than them it seems more than fair.

average weekly rental £78.8 a week / £320 month for all council properties seems a little low compared to market rents of £841.

https://www.gov.uk/government/statis...ancies#history

https://www.gov.uk/government/statis...s-england-only

I used to quite like drinking in my local because it was cheap & convenient, after years of patronage it was converted into housing. Should I have jumped up & down or just realised that things change? Because I was a client not the owner I would have no part in the decision.

[NotAllThere]

While I agree with the subsidy removal, it still seems a bit tough for someone to be thrown out of their rented family home after 25 years, as could happen.

FTFY

its not theirs. If they want it to be theirs then they need to buy it. If they do that then sooner or later they will have to sell it so they can subsidise someone else's care home fees as well as their own.

Ok. While I agree with the subsidy removal, it still seems a bit tough for someone be thrown out of the home where they established their family, after 25 years.

Mind you, my wife and I are thinking of moving into an apartment and giving the house (we own) to the kids.

[vetran]

FTFY

In which case the council should point that out not complain about the policy.

[NickFitz]

There is a miserable pittance for each local council that doesn't come anywhere near covering such deserving cases.

FTFY