Council offers rent cuts as transfer incentive
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Dacorum Council has pledged that some of its tenants will see their rents fall if it is successful in transferring its 11,000 homes to a housing association.
Its final offer document, issued last week, states that the council’s current policy has been to start all new tenants on target rents rather than the current actual rents enjoyed by existing tenants. The offer document admits that this has been ‘a concern’ for tenants.
But it adds: ‘If the transfer goes ahead all new tenancies will be re-let on the current rent and those new tenancies that moved to target since the policy was introduced in August 2008 will, at the point of transfer, revert to the rent level that would have applied had it been let at the existing rent (subject to the annual increases and no backdating to August 2008).’
It is consulting on transferring the homes to a community gateway association.
It adds that it will provide tenants with a five-year rent guarantee and that ‘the council cannot give the same guarantee if the transfer does not go ahead.’
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Readers' comments (10)
Bryan Latter | 14/11/2009 8:43 am
As a retired Business & Property Consultant, I advise Council tenants to reject transfers of the ownership of their homes to Housing Associations.
The reason being simply that Councils are accountable to the public - the electorate. Housing Associations are not !
Many large housing associations are now controlled by career motivated
'professionals' and are not even democratically accountable to their members
(shareholders) let alone the public. That is despite the recent Court Ruling that they are a Public Body.
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teddy mcnabb | 15/11/2009 4:17 pm
They would be mad to transfer! Just see what a disaster other transfers have been.
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Melvin Bone | 16/11/2009 8:44 am
Surely there must have been some successful transfers somewhere...
Or have they all gone belly up?
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Philip R | 16/11/2009 10:18 am
To answer Melvin, most transfers have been a success if not judged so by Defend Council Housing views certainly from the tenants themselves! Indeed the overwhelming evidence from tenants in the vast majority of transfer organisations is that they feel that they are getting better maintained and modern homes and services. And those that get involved or feedback get more say than in "accountable organisations" where the same political party is assured of control year after year. Of course there have been a few less successful transfers but compared to the reluctance of many local authorities to invest in improving homes for the long term (and the evidence is frequently to be seen) these are proportionately fewer and get tackled.
The most important thing is to give tenants the choice and not try to get a result by frightening people with unsubstantiated allegations.
I'm sure that this will produce the usual response from Defend Council Housing idealists!
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Lou | 16/11/2009 10:26 am
Of course some transfers have gone well.
HA's are regulated, governed and have their ability to perform tied up in knots if they screw up. This idea that they don't listen to tenants or are accountable is hogwash.
Councils transfer property when they can no longer afford to maintain them. And if you refuse transfer - where is that money going to magically come from?
It is staggeringly unfair to suggest the majority of HA's are incompetent and ineffectual. And to suggest that councils run housing so much better is laughable.
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Inquisitorial | 16/11/2009 10:46 am
Since when have Councils not been controlled by career motivated empire builders having gold plated pension and jobs for life! The notion that Council officers and councillors are any more accountable is no more fanciful than shareholders having a controlling interest over corporate UK.
The simple answer is stock transfer enables access to resources that would not otherwise be provided, yes its blackmail in some ways, not its not a free chocie but its better than staying as in some cases a slum landlord or with the same old servcies dleiverd in teh same old way.
Yes they do work, they are a success, take a look around or is the glass still half empty?!
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Peter | 16/11/2009 11:21 am
The definition of 'successful transfers' is somewhat subjective. The biggest concern is that HA is not as a democratic organization as they would like to portray. Areas of concern will be that of one accountability and if they are providing social housing and receiving grants, are they a public body or not?
Though the recent ruling states they are (in some cases) but there are a lot of shade of grey in the operation of a HA. If any HAs that are worth their salt should become public bodies with greater transparency and accountability. (ah! yes, pigs might fly)
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Jim Paton | 17/11/2009 1:39 am
Are any of the above people HA tenants? Sounds like views from the corporate unreality capsules of intolerance and normative values which HAs generally are. The litmus test is how do they treat people? I suspect most of the above commentators don't have a clue about that. Those who do don't need to be told.
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A Rice | 21/11/2009 4:43 pm
This is NOT a Housing Association. It is a Community Gateway. Watford has a sucessful Community Gateway and if people wish to find out more then they can ask those at Watford. There are other Gateways at Greenfields and Preston.
Please find out more about them before comments are made incorrectly. A Community Gateway is all about Tenant Empowerment. The current Council Housing Staff will be transferring with the Gateway so you will have all the expertise you need. If it stays under Council jurisdiction your properties will not be kept to a good standard as they do not have any money.
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Questionable | 21/11/2009 9:17 pm
Surely all transfers are treated individually and regulated by the relevant governing bodies TSA/HCA and FSA??
If there is no alternative but to transfer local authority housing stock to Housing Associations, whom have more access to funding to improve the standards of the housing stock then I see no problem. There are also many different types of HA to be considered when looking into a stock transfer. There is no simple should we shouldn't we transfer there are many pro's and cons to consider.
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