How Do I Find Out Which Housing Association Owns A Property?
By
HuutiMoney
This blog post aims to help in answering the question of how one finds out which housing associations own a property. While we will mainly be addressing this question through the following content, we will also explore the application process and eligibility criteria for social housing tenancy.
How Do I Find Out Which Housing Association Owns A Property?
If you want to find out which Housing Association owns a property, you can check with your local council office. Council authorities have lists of Housing Association that offer social housing in their area. Sometimes these lists are printed and placed within the council office as well.
If you are looking to apply for social housing through a housing association, you may have to check with your local council office first. While some housing associations accept direct applications from claimants, a lot of them require you to apply with your local council office; which first runs an eligibility check before allowing you to be approved for social housing.
In some cases, you may also find advertisements placed by housing associations in local newspapers, the internet or even the website of your local council office; announcing vacant sites that are available for social housing occupants.
In addition to this, you can also contact the office (or website) of the Land Registry service and request details regarding the ownership of a property. Below are the relevant options that they can offer for services provided:
- You can request a Title Register to learn about the ownership, their name and contact details (or ownership in the case of multiple owners over time) by providing an address to the Land Registry. They normally charge £14.89 for this service.
- If you do not know the complete (or correct) address of the property or the ownership of which you are looking to confirm, you can use the digital map on the Land Registry’s website to indicate the location of the property using coordinates. This is a Tile Registry Map Search which requires a marked Ordnance Survey plan and can take up to a few days. The fee for this service is usually £34.99.
Then some websites can provide details of properties owned by housing associations. For instance, MovingSoon is a website that carries details of housing association properties that are currently available for tenants. These are listed county-wise on their web page.
However, you will only find details of housing association properties that are available for being rented out mentioned on this website and not those which are currently occupied by tenants.
That said, there may be situations in which you will not be able to find out which housing association owns a property. At times, it may not be very easy to get details of properties owned by housing associations, while at other times, the data may not be updated and the property could be sold out to private tenants, the council, an individual social housing landlord or another housing association in the area.
How Do You Apply For Housing Association Tenancy?
You can apply for a housing association tenancy either directly through the housing association’s office or website otherwise you may need to apply through your local council office.
Your application will first be assessed to confirm whether or not you meet the eligibility criteria; the primary parameter being a low income, with priority given to applicants who live in overcrowded conditions, have severe health-related issues that are worsened by their current housing conditions or are at risk of homelessness.
Eligible applicants will be asked to undergo a verification check to confirm the information shared with them. If their verification check is successful, they will make it to the shortlisting stage for social housing.
Being shortlisted is an indication that you are now being ranked in priority for being offered properties to view and being interviewed by housing association landlords. As you proceed through these steps, you can qualify for a housing association tenancy,
If you intend to apply for social housing tenancy directly through a housing association, you will find a list of housing associations on the National Housing Federation. This website carries details of housing associations which are also NHF members.
What Are The Tenancy Options For A Housing Association Property?
Housing association tenancies include the following options:
- Starter Tenancy: This is generally known as the trial period tenancy which is offered to new housing tenants as the period of tenancy is usually 12 months. Upon completion of the trial period, they are offered an assured or fixed-term tenancy agreement.
- Assured Tenancy: On successful completion of your Starter Tenancy you may be offered an Assured Tenancy contract with the housing association landlord. In this case, you can continue living in the property that you are currently in, for as long as you wish to.
- Fixed Term Tenancy: This is a tenancy under a fixed term of usually 5 years. The term of the tenancy is subject to renewal at the discretion of the housing association landlord.
Assured and Fixed Term tenancies allow tenants to purchase the property that they are living in, have home repairs done on the premises, as well as swap their house with another council housing tenant under mutual exchange.
Can A Tenant Buy The Housing Association Property They Live In?
Yes, a tenant can buy the housing association property that they live in; however, there are certain conditions to be met. As an assured tenant, you can purchase your housing association property under the Right to Acquire scheme by filling out the Right to Acquire Application Form.
To be eligible, you an applicant should be able to meet the below-listed criteria:
- the housing association property is their main home
- it is a self-contained property
- their housing association landlord is registered with the Registered providers of social housing
However, you may lose your eligibility from the Right to Acquire scheme to purchase housing association property if you are facing bankruptcy or you have received a court order for eviction.
Conclusion:
The above discussion has presented us with a few options regarding how to find out which housing association owns a property. One of the most convenient options may be to establish contact with your local council office or the particular housing association that you are looking for.