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housing entitlements in the social sector
Does anyone know what the ‘social sector’ means in para 2.53 of the budget? (From April 2013, housing entitlements for working age people in the social sector will reflect family size). If it means Housing Associations, which are currently not affected by rent restrictions, how are they going to do this?
My understanding is that it does mean RSLs (I know, the name has changed) and, further, LA tenants. As to the how, only time will tell.
I’m in agreement with Kevin in that the ‘social sector’ does include Housing Associations and LA tenants. I’ve not seen anything yet as to how they are going to do this and implement the changes so at the moment think it’s a case of watch this space
As Kevin has said, they’ve changed the name and no use the term RSL’s, it’s now Private Registered Provider of Social Housing, abbreviated to Registered Providers (RP’s)
They have already worked out how much it will save (£490 million a year) so they must have done some work on it
Anybody else notice that they seemed to have very quietly abolished the 5 bedroom LHA rate from April 2011 as well?
“or am i just being silly now”
No, but I suspect you’re exaggerating just a little! After all, in many areas there is a very serious shortage of social housing (especially larger houses) & you can make an argument for saying that the greater social good could come from making more of them available to families that need them.
However, it does all depend on how this is done - which we don’t know!
JJ, I think the changes suggested regarding the social sector are currently only aimed at “working age claimants” so elderly couples should be ok. However there may not be much distinction in their eyes between the “working age” and “elderly “.
My understanding is that it does mean RSLs (I know, the name has changed) and, further, LA tenants. As to the how, only time will tell.
It will be by applying LHA on the social sector.
Seriously though, it is difficult to see how this might be implemented. One way of doing it might be to make referral of council rents to the rent officer a possibility,and make referral of HA rents mandatory where there is underoccupation as defined in the rent officer regs. But it looks like the rent service is due for the chop with the linking of LHA to CPI
Ok, maybe the answer is that they will move to standardise the implementation of HB and tenure across the private and “social” sector. Put simply you award any new council/social tenants an AST. You then make these “new” tenancies subject to LHA. This in theory would drive down the overall LHA rates, (it would be the equivalent of a new super private landlord letting properties at about half of current LHA) which would produce overall savings . Slowly the distinction between council and private lets would start to disappear….........
There is lots of information about on LHA for the Social Sector it was dropped by the last administration.
I’m not sure about driving down rent charges being the focus but size criteria and direct payments were, as I remember the bigger points.
Georgie Porgies budget wasn’t all new as we know. The direct payments were a method of socially engineering ‘responsibility’ to the ‘worklessnessesses.’
I can’t see that there is a cost saving by implementing LHA on the social sector other than reducing dependency in the long term.
Hello John
If you had a new private landlord in Stockport that let 1500 to 2000 properties, a year, at say half the level of your current LHA. I suspect you would quickly discover your LHA would start to fall.
The lower the LHA, the less the govt pays out. The higher the saving.
In my view the agenda is definitely to drive down LHA.
The government is refusing to rule out changing the tenure of new social tenants. The official line is “we will protect the tenure of existing tenannts”.
I can imagine the private sector might have something to say about all that…..
Of course, there are a couple of issues here.
What the private sector says….
What the private sector does…..
The real question is how much you can drive down the LHA, without the private sector starting to dry up.
My prediction is landlords, will massively complain about falling LHA. (be interesting to see what position advice workers take) However, they wont pull out for a long while…........
Landlords have a long history of crying wolf.
Q: The real question is how much you can drive down the LHA, without the private sector starting to dry up.
A: 20 centiles
Yep its all part of the same agenda. Mind you I reckon its a case of propose 20 and settle for 10.
[ Edited: 29 Jun 2010 at 01:18 pm by Rehousing Advice. ]