What is Choice Based Lettings?

 

Choice Based Lettings (CBL) changes how councils and Housing Associations (also known as Registered Social Landlords - RSL’s) let their properties.  The Home-Link scheme is Huntingdonshire's CBL scheme run in partnership with six other councils.  Rather than the council allocating homes, this scheme allows people on the housing register to show an interest in an individual property (known as bidding).  Available properties will be advertised on the Home-Link website (see link on the right of this page) and in a fortnightly magazine which will be available throughout the district.  People on the register have their application placed into one of four ‘priority bands’ according to their housing need.  Basically properties will be let to the highest priority person who bids for a property, as long as they qualify to be offered that property.

 

Why change to a Choice Based Lettings scheme?

 

The Government requires all councils and Housing Associations to introduce a CBL scheme by 2010.  It is hoped that CBL will improve on the current way of allocating properties by:

• allowing people to make decisions over where they live by letting them exercise choice
• helping create sustainable communities where people have chosen to live; and
• encouraging the effective use of limited council and Housing Association housing stock. 

Who can apply?

 

Anyone aged 16 or over can apply for housing. However until the applicant reaches 18 years old, they will not be eligible to bid through the CBL scheme without a guarantor for their tenancy.  Also, applicants under 18 years old will be encouraged to initially go into supported housing schemes such as Kings Ripton Court and Paines Mill Foyer to enable them to learn life skills to help them hold a tenancy of their own in the future.

 

How do I apply?

 

If you were already on the council's Housing Register before February 2008 you would have been transferred across to the Home-Link scheme. You would have been sent details about the scheme in the post, telling you your priority under the new banding system (which replaced points) and giving you information on how to bid for properties.

 

New applications can be made by completing an on line form on the Home-Link website (click on the link on the right and go to the Registration page) or by requesting a paper form to complete and return from your local council.

 

What are bands?

 

People are placed into one of four bands depending on their housing need.

• Band A is for households with an urgent need to move
• Band B is for households with a high priority to move.
• Band C is for households with a medium housing need.
• Band D is for households adequately housed.

 

Will I still be given points?

 

No, all applications will be placed in one of the four bands that will indicate their level of housing need.

 

How do I know what band I’m in?

 

Once your application has been assessed we will write to you informing what band you have been placed in and your unique reference number, which you will need to keep in a safe place as this allows you to bid for homes through the Home-Link scheme.

 

Where can I find out which homes are available?

 

All our available homes will be advertised in many forms, these include;

• A fortnightly flyer distributed at various points across the district - see the user guide on the Home-Link website for details
• Through the Home-Link website - an electronic version of the flyer is available on the website as well as you being able to log on and see the properties you are eligible for 
• At Centenary House, the council's customer service centre on St Mary's Street in Huntingdon.          

Each property will be labelled to show who can apply for it.

 

Who can place a bid on a home they are interested in?

 

You can only bid for a property after you have applied to and being accepted onto the Home-Link scheme.  Property adverts will show how many bedrooms the property has and you will only be able to bid for the size of property that your household needs.  The adverts will also show whether there are other restrictions such as the age of applicant or whether pets will be allowed.  You must look at the eligibility criteria for the property to see whether you are able to be considered for it.  There is no point bidding for a property that you are not eligible for and that would be a wasted bid. 

 

What is a ‘bid’ and how will I place one?

 

Placing a bid does not involve the use of money, it simply means to ‘express an interest’ in a property. People are able to bid:

• On the Home-Link website
• By telephone
• By text
• On one of the coupons you are sent when you registered
• In person at the council's offices 

How will I know if the home is suitable for me or not?

 

Each property will be advertised with a short description. This will include the number of bedrooms and size of household that can bid for it, and any special features of the property.

 

How many bids can I make?

 

You can bid for up to three properties in every fortnightly cycle.  The advertising cycle lasts from 9am on the Friday that it opens to 12 noon on the following Wednesday.  This gives you just over 5 days to look at the available properties and make a bid.  Bids cannot be made outside the advertising cycle.

 

How do I know if my bid is successful?

 

Once the bidding closes a shortlist of interested applicants for each home will be produced. The applicant offered the home will be the person in the highest priority band with the longest date in that band, as long as they meet the criteria of the property. If that person refuses the home will be offered to the next person and so on until the home is let.

 

If you have not been contacted within one week after the deadline, assume you have not been successful on that occasion and please try again.  You will also be able to see information on the band of the person that the property was let to and how long they had been in that band.  This will give you and idea whether you are bidding for properties where you have a realistic chance of being housed.  This information is available on the Home-Link website and in the fortnightly magazine.

 

Will the number of properties available increase with Home-Link?

 

No, Home-Link will not produce additional properties. The number of people wishing to be re-housed is significantly greater than the number of properties available. However, Home-Link is a far more open, fair and transparent system for letting homes. Applicants will clearly see just how many homes are available, how many customers are bidding for the properties and how successful they are likely to be.

 

Are any other local Councils in the Cambridgeshire area moving to a choice based letting scheme?

 

Yes, the Government awarded money to the whole of the Cambridge sub-region to allow the 7 councils in the sub-region to develop a choice based letting scheme. The resulting Home-Link scheme covers Huntingdonshire and the following council areas:

 

• Cambridge City Council
• East Cambridgeshire District Council in partnership with Hereward Housing
• Fenland District Council
• Forest Heath District Council in partnership with Kings Forest Housing Association
• South Cambridgeshire District Council
• St Edmundsbury District Council in partnership with Havebury Housing Association

 

What if I want to move from the Huntingdonshire District Council area to another local authority in the sub-region?

 

A percentage of properties are available for applicants to ‘bid’ on from the other six local authorities in the Cambridge sub-region. This will offer applicants the chance to move between the various districts, for example Fenland to Forest Heath, South Cambs to St Edmundsbury.

 

These properties are labelled as 'Cross Parter' properties in the magazine and on the website.