Moving Out, being independant How ??

okmate

Hi Members sorry for the vague title i wasn't sure what to enter whoops.
I have been with my folks on and off for some years now I'm 47 nearly 48 years old and was diagnosed around a year ago with Psoriatic Arthritis, I've worked all my life until a started having issues about 2 years ago. i am currently on Universal credit and PIP and really need to move out and get my own place and independence, ive registered for social housing on Bham Gov and received no verdict at all but it does seem like i'm not eligible, I have been finding things very tough lately and have since been diagnosed as being severely depressed which i'm now taking medication for .I have no idea what to do next and really would love to get some information of help i'm entitled to. thanks again for reading 

poppy123456

It can be extremely difficult to be housed with social housing if you're a single person, even if you have a disability.

Have you tried looking for privately rented? maybe a small flat on the ground floor? I appreciate that this also isn't going to be easy either because a lot of landlords won't accept those that claim for help with the rent through benefits.

You can do a google search to see what's on offer local to you. As a single person you'll be entitled to 1 bedroom rate of local housing allowance (LHA) https://lha-direct.voa.gov.uk/

okmate

Thankyou, i was thinking the same when it comes to private but really dont know the process of how it works, do you have to apply for it before looking at property's ?

poppy123456

You need to look for private landlords in your area. Letting agencies for example. Your local Authority may have a list of landlords that accept those claiming benefits but it may not be up to date. You do not need to apply for help with any rent before looking at properties.

Luchia

okmate said:

Thankyou, i was thinking the same when it comes to private but really dont know the process of how it works, do you have to apply for it before looking at property's ?

Usually you can just go to the estate agents and they will arrange the tenancy when you sign up after your have viewed and agreed to take a property , it would be best to phone around a few and ask if they currently have any landlords that would accept benefits as a lot won’t so this way your not having a wasted trip 

okmate

Thankyou so much for your advice, i really do appreciate it

durhamjaide2001

There's lots of options you can move into supported living, sheltered housing, or you could even live by yourself and have a buzzer to press in an emergency. I hope this helps. 

L_Volunteer

You are welcome @okmate. It is the very least you deserve. 

Please don't hesitate to let us know if there's anything else we can do to support you. We are all here for you and listening to you 

okmate

I will be phoning [Removed by moderator – personal identifiable information, please see community house rules.] tomorrow as i believe that they may be able to help me. thankyou, will keep you all updated

okmate

Thought i would let you know where i am in my challenges, i have spoken to a lovely lady at [Removed by moderator – personal identifiable information, please see community house rules.] and she thought it would be a good idea if she refers me to a company called [Removed by moderator – personal identifiable information, please see community house rules.] ive had a meeting with a lovely lady and explained all my issues and hopefully i will be given a coach to help me in my journey, my fingers are crossed, I have also received conformation that i do not have any housing need, so i have appealed the decision based on me being stuck in my bedroom and worried to ask to wash clothes etc, i did take a screen shot just before i sent it which ive attached i hope ive done the right thing

Autism_at_40

Hello,
Sorry to hear about your issues.  I have been in a similar-ish position recently.  I had to move in with my sister for a year.  I have Autism and had a lot of health issues happen (fatigue, brain fog, memory issues, mental health issues etc) which were not taken seriously by her and I also felt like I couldn't do anything and basically lived in my room too.

Since I got out of there and am staying with a friend (better situation, but still feel like I'm imposing) I have learnt a lot.  

You can get social housing with more than just the council, there are a lot of social housing associations out there if you look for them.  I started out just checking all the property websites (rightmove, zoopla, onthemarket) many times a day and found some affordable properties which had been posted by housing associations.

From there, I registered directly with them, as some of them have their own portals and only when they don't get a tenant on those, do they then post them on property websites.

If you choose to go down the private renting route, you will probably find it very difficult, as I have, unless you have a guarantor.  (If you do then great).  I have spoken to numerous agencies and all of them have told me that you have to pass an affordability check before any landlord will approve your tenancy.  If you don't have a guarantor, then they will expect you to pay the whole tenancy up front.

It is illegal for them to turn down a tenancy based on you being on benefits though.  I think it's more if you don't have a guarantor, that they can say no.

There are also charities out there that do their own supported living.  I would advise just contacting as many of them as you possibly can.  I have found that even if I've contacted a charity/organisation and they can't help me, they have been able to give me some advice on what to do next.

You may also want to contact Citizen's Advice, they may be able to provide you with some information too.

I hope this helps, I know it is long, but I really have learnt a lot in the last few months.

Thankfully, I have just heard about a social housing flat that I bid on one of the portals and have been accepted, I had written it off as I hadn't heard anything.

It may take some time, but if you keep at it every day, I'm sure something will come up.

Good Luck

Community_Scope

Hello @okmate

We just want to let you know we’ve edited your comment because it contained personal identifiable information. For more information about why we removed this, please consider our online community house rules.

I'll also be emailing you shortly just to go over a few things, so please keep an eye out for that.

All the best,

Cher

Online community team

rubin16

I think social housing is impossible if you're single and have no dependants. I would look at other options like Supported Accomodation or Private rent. I moved into supported accomodation last year after living with my parents all my life (now 31). Now I have my own flat which came fully furnished with everything I need (including bedding, cultery, pans, sofa's units etc) and I get a support worker thats visits me twice a week and takes me shopping, and sorts out my bills and appointments.

I have Autism, ADHD, Schizophrenia and bad crohn's disease so my support gets funded on the NHS and council, and its a permintent basis so even if I have to move out of this flat for whatever reason the would find me somewhere else to live straight away.

Just know that there is other options than social housing, as I was on the waiting list from when I was 18 and never came close to getting a property, but then I was refereed to this supported accomodation company and they gave me a flat within a week.

Autism_at_40

@rubin16 I don't agree that social housing is impossible for single people with no dependants as that is my situation and that's exactly what I am doing.

I'm sure you have your reasons and supported accommodation seems more suited for you.

rubin16

Sorry proberly the word impossible is wrong in this context, I just mean extremley hard. Even with medical conditions you're not seen as a priority when your single and have no dependants. Whereas if you search other options you may be seen as a priority case and find a home sooner.

durhamjaide2001

I would love to be able to live independently so thank you for making up this thread. 

Luchia

rubin16 said:

Sorry proberly the word impossible is wrong in this context, I just mean extremley hard. Even with medical conditions you're not seen as a priority when you’re single and have no dependants. Whereas if you search other options you may be seen as a priority case and find a home sooner.

I think it greatly depends on the circumstances and the council, I was recently given a large 2 bedroom bungalow with private gardens as I have a medical condition that affects my mobility, they waived the age restrictions as I’m only in my 30s, it took a total of 7 weeks of bidding and 14 weeks to have the keys and be moving in. 

okmate

Hi Friends , I thought i would update you on my situation, and hope that someone may be able to guide me in the right direction, I have applied for social housing with birmingham city council it was refused and now await the appeal process, i have also been helped by the trident reach support program and have been seeking lots of other options including midland heart private etc, its been so disappointing and feel like i'm banging my head on a brick wall, its really has knocked my mental health right back, I have been thinking to transfer my benifits of to shropshire council to live temporarily with my sister as i feel i need to get away from birmingham and start a new life, the problem is i have no idea what i should do and who to contact, i realise these days that its important you say the correct things so hopefully someone can guide . my fingers are crossed