Housing Advice

Leaving home is a natural step for young people. If you have the choice to stay at home and are happy then this will no doubt be a lot cheaper. But, if for whatever reason you need to leave home please try to plan for this and get some professional advice.

Housing Executive Properties

Public Rented Housing is provided by councils (local authorities or boroughs) and housing associations, both of which receive funding from the Government to subsidise the costs of building and maintaining the properties.

Rents are usually lower in public sector accommodation and there is an enormous demand for it. Families with children are given priority for this type of accommodation. It is very difficult for single people to get into public rented housing.

Tenant's Rights

When you accept your tenancy, you have a legally binding agreement between yourself and the NI Housing Executive (your landlord). You then have the following legally established rights:

Security of tenure.
The right to information.
The right to sublet part of your home.
The right to improve your home.
The right to exchange your home.

A tenants handbook is issued to you when you accept the tenancy. You should read this handbook carefully for further information on the above rights.

Local Housing Allowance

Local Housing Allowance is a new Housing Benefit scheme for tenants who rent accommodation from private landlords. It came into force on 7th April 2008. The new Local Housing Allowance affects how Housing Benefit is worked out but it does not replace Housing Benefit. NI Housing Executive, Housing Association and some other tenants will continue to get Housing Benefit just as before.

Local Housing Allowance is just a change in the way Housing Benefit is calculated for private tenants.

The change will introduce a system of Local Housing Allowances based on the area in which you live and the number of people who live with you.

Further information on the Local Housing Allowance scheme can be obtained by clicking on this download pdf link. Information can also be obtained from your local Housing Executive office.

Privately Rented Accommodation

Private sector accommodation is normally owned or leased by private individuals and rented out, often for profit. It is much easier to find but more expensive than public rented housing and you have less security on the whole than in the public sector tenancies.

Finding Private Accommodation

Local newspapers carry adverts for rooms and bed-sits as well as whole flats/apartments and even houses (though the latter are generally advertised through an estate agent or accommodation agency).

Accommodation agencies and estate agents find tenants for landlords and sometimes manage the properties for them as well. Look for the words "free service to tenants" as that means they are charging the landlord for their services and not you.

It is illegal for agencies to charge you a fee just to register with them. If they try this with you, refuse and report it to your local council's trading standards office so that the Agents can be prosecuted.

Buying a Home

In the less than stable financial times in which we currently have to live buying a home can be difficult, especially for first time buyers.

The so called 'credit crunch', has shaken-up the mortgage market and has seen lenders scrabbling to exit the high lending arena where mortgages of 125% of a property's value used to be available - now the average mortgage offer is closer to 95% of a property's value. And soon first-time buyers may once again need to save 10% of a property's value before making any offer for a property.

The latest figures from Nationwide suggest the average cost of a property in the UK is currently £163,398 - meaning a deposit of £16,339 is needed.

All this makes it very difficult for a first time buyer to get a foot on the housing ladder.

This also explains why in recent years renting has become so popular, especially with young people.

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