Welsh government wants to end right to buy

[Nicholas Wallwork]

The Welsh government has begun the process which they hope will lead to the abolishment of right to buy in Wales. This will mean that council tenants in Wales will no longer have the right

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[kchiggs]

Since councils can;t use right-to-buy money for replacement housing stock, this should allow council housing stock to go up. The council tenants who can can move into private sector rent-to-buy homes instead making way for those who need the council houses. A very sensible approach by the Welsh government.

 

[nmb]

I agree - but should someone who has lived in a council house all of their life be asked to move if they improve their finances, etc. What happens if they hit hard times again? I think this is a very interesting topic.

On the matter of selling off social housing, it does not make any sense to keep the right to buy going when councils will need to replace this stock with new, more expensive council housing. At last we see politicians using common sense.

 

[kchiggs]

If they hit hard times again, they can move back into the council house(that's kind of the point of maintaining stock.) I will admit in certain large-scale hard times building enough can be a problem. Some other countries solve this by using caravans as medium-term accommodation (caravan parks can be thrown up quicker than houses and require much less infrastructure, making sites viable that are not for housing stock, offer people a permanent place , have a large market(so lots can be brought quickly),and offer a sense of ownership that b&bs don't. Container homes are also viable options,however there is simply no political will there, because a lot of home-owner voters will descend into NIMBYism.

 

[realdeals]

I have also seen a lot of these micro-flats mentioned as a way of addressing the housing shortage. It would be interesting to see how many renters/home owners are single as this type of "value for money" property may appeal to them?

 

[kchiggs]

Try data.gov.uk. the micro flats are also worth considering for temporary accommodation. I've seen some interesting ideas (I think Australia) in which their used inside warehouses so as to provide emergency shelter within hours and in the meantime they stored in warehouses out the way.

 

[nmb]

When you consider the number of people who live on the streets surely these micro-flats ahould be taken more seriously by the authorities?

 

[kchiggs]

When you consider the number of people who live on the streets surely these micro-flats should be taken more seriously by the authorities?

All these solutions cost money. Empty hotels, B&Bs and even empty office blocks or even trains(they are parked overnight,modern ones have their own toilet tanks ,heating and power via overheads or the diesel locomotive) are all possible solutions to people living on the street. As are micro-flats Do you want to raise taxes or do you want to cut the budget elsewhere to pay for it?

 

[nmb]

Surely long term the building of micro-flats is more cost effective than paying for B&Bs, hotels, etc? What about the 1m+ properties around the UK which are unused because they are derelict, can they not be better utilised ?

 

[kchiggs]

Actually hotels are more cost effective in terms of per person costs. As long as you buy or rent the whole hotel. There are examples of disused sites or owner operators wanting to retire where it is a viable option. Other alternatives are empty rooms they cost the hotel the same anyway.