has anyone gone from owning a house into social housing or rental property due to disability

happyfella

I would like to know if anyone has gone through this situation. We are being forced to sell our property next year due to how difficult the people who adapt homes are being.

I cannot manage stairs, so i need help to get up the stairs and my wife also has health problems and it causes her pain to get me up the stairs to the toilet.

Last year the indepdent living team or whatevery they are called came out and they wanted to build a massive extension at the back of the property which i have talked about before. This would block out the light from the kitchen and the lounge and leave us in darkness.

All we need is a downstairs toiler with a wash basis, but they want to build a downstairs washroom or whatever you call it with a shower, wash basin and toilet.

They are paying for the first £5,000 and then we would be paying the reminader £15,000 which they take if we ever sell the house. However, i have argued with them and showed them plans where we could have a downstairs toilet by knocking through into the kitchen and moving the stairs. My plans would be so much cheaper and much better, but they are having none of it.

So, now, because the house is not suitable to us we are being forced to put the house up for sale next year. We would prefer to move into social housing through a housing assocation but we are coming across problems with that. I have looked at the very few housing associations we have and i am too young for a bungalow by five years, and they would not let my daughter live there who i need for support.

I would like to know if anyone has gone from selling their house to then move into social housing or rental accomodation and share their experience, and if scope have any advisors on this subject.

janer1967

Hi 

Yes I did this my house was unsuitable when I became disabled 

First step was putting house on market social housing won't even let you register if it isn't then register on local housing list 

Then ot report to state I needed bungalow or ground floor this then allowed me to bid on bungalows I was only 50 at time so not eligible for bungalow without disability reason 

Kept bidding no luck then my house sold and was assigned to homeless team which took me to highest band 

This was a year down the lune finally got suitable bungalow 2 weeks before my house sale was completed 

I had to show there was no profit from the sale and I had no savings to be eligible as well if there had been I would have been expected to private rent 

Any other questions just ask 

happyfella

janer1967 said:

Hi 

Yes I did this my house was unsuitable when I became disabled 

First step was putting house on market social housing won't even let you register if it isn't then register on local housing list 

Then ot report to state I needed bungalow or ground floor this then allowed me to bid on bungalows I was only 50 at time so not eligible for bungalow without disability reason 

Kept bidding no luck then my house sold and was assigned to homeless team which took me to highest band 

This was a year down the lune finally got suitable bungalow 2 weeks before my house sale was completed 

I had to show there was no profit from the sale and I had no savings to be eligible as well if there had been I would have been expected to private rent 

Any other questions just ask 

Thank you. We would have £40,000 left over from the house sale which could go against us. It feels like we are fighting a losing battle. There are so many rules in place. Some wont allow dogs and i have a dog which i keep getting told to register as an assistant dog due to her making me feel safe and the things she does. Plus i am too young, although my doctors have said they will provide letters.

We are looking at shared ownership but again, we cannot do that until we have sold the property. What we are being told now and not sure if this is right or wrong is, we will not get any help or be considered until we have sold the house. It is very stressful. The house is simply not suitable for us.

Did you ever consider shared ownership where you buy a small part of the house and then pay rent. Each time i contact advice places, they say this is not something they can help with, feel like i am on my own

janer1967

No I didn't consider part ownership I literally had £1600 left after sale had to sell house well under priced as I hadn't paid mortgage for 9 months so was under pressure to sell or would have been repossessed 

I had to give up work due to disability and just separated from my husband so single parent so couldn't pay mortgage 

The council started to take me serious once house had agreed buyer luckily if was someone wanting to rent it out so wasn't in that much rush to complete 

Each council register has different criteria but if you own a home they won't let you register and with the amount of surplus cash you have would probably expect you to private rent 

It's all a nightmare I was 2 weeks away from being homeless in a wheelchair and with a young child 

janer1967

My property is a new build on a small estate of houses and bungalows 

Mix of private owned part ownership and social housing 

Most annoying I'd my neighbour a girl in her 20s in a bungalow social housing tenant with no disabilities or medical need so God knows how she was eligible 

My bungalows isn't classed as disabled adapted eg no wetroom but it meets my needs 

Have you considered a stair lift instead of converting to downstairs toilet 

happyfella

I have considered a stair lift but i have a fear of heights. I know it sounds daft, but i would not feel safe on one. i just dont understand why the independent living team want to spend more money than is needed. The extention they want to build will include a wet room. I have seen the plans and the extention is massive and blocks out all the light from the kitchen and leave me a little window in the lounge. if there was another way of getting this done then i would do it without their help

poppy123456

If you move out before the house is sold it can be disregarded from capital for your UC claim for 6 months, sometimes longer. You will have to prove it is up for sale though but once you do that a decision maker will then disregard it and your UC will just continue.

Once it's sold any savings you have that's more than £16,000 will mean entitlement to all means tested benefits will end. If you claim council tax reduction then all local Authorities have their own rules and some have a maximum savings limit of £6,000.

Once your savings go below £16,000 you can reclaim UC but there will be a deduction of £4.35/month for every £250 or part there of over £6,000.

If you have any debts these can be paid and it's not classed as deprivation of capital for UC purposes.

I know you said you're scred of heights but what happens when you go upstairs? Can you just sit on the stairlift and look up rather than down? It would be a lot less stressful than selling your home and trying to find somewhere else to live, especially when you have a dog because i know lots of landlords won't allowe pets (not that i agree with that)

perdita

Hi, my situation was slightly different ....but we lost our home due to not being able  to work due to ill health and disability. We were privately renting. We had been on social housing lists for over 5 years. We even had occupational referral saying I needed rehousing due to the unsuitability of the home we were renting. To no avail.
We bit the bullet and now live in a lovely small shared ownership house. There is a scheme in shared ownership called HOLD which do bungalows and is geared towards the disabled.
Hope you get the support you need.

perdita

Ps you don't need to have fully sold your current property to apply just need to have exchanged contracts.  Once you have a buyer then you can apply. Suggest if you are interested you fill in and have the affordability check done. With 40k (dependent on area) you might be able to buy share outright. 😀