Sutton Homechoice

Am I eligible?

To be considered for social housing, applicants must make an application to join the housing register. To be eligible for the housing register, you must:

• be aged 16 or over
• not be subject to immigration control (i.e. you must be a citizen of the UK, the Commonwealth or the European Economic Area unless granted refugee status or granted leave to enter or remain in the UK)

 

Will be my application be accepted?

To be accepted onto the housing register you must have a housing need, as defined in the Housing Allocations Policy. If you are an existing tenant of Sutton Housing Partnership or one of our partner housing associations you can apply for a transfer even if you do not have a housing need. 

You will also need to have lived in the London Borough of Sutton for 2 years continuously immediately prior to your application. We will consider out of borough applicants if there is a need to move into the borough to take up employment or avoid hardship.

When assessing your application, your financial circumstances will be taken into account, If you are deemed to have the financial means to secure your own housing in the private sector then you will not be accepted to the housing register. The financial threshold is dependent on family makeup, the size of property you need and your essential expenditure, such as childcare costs.

Applicants with outstanding rent arrears or with a history of rent arrears or anti-social behaviour will not be accepted onto the register until they have demonstrated a change in conduct/behaviour for a minimum of 12 months.

 

How does the housing register work?

Once your application has been assessed, if accepted you will be given a priority date. This is either the date you applied, or if your circumstances change giving you more priority it will be the date we were informed of the change. You will also be placed into a Band according to your circumstances:

• Band A is for households with an urgent need to move and includes applicants with serious medical needs, under occupiers and those with a need to be moved on from supported accommodation.
• Band B is for households accepted as homeless.
• Band C is for households living in unsatisfactory conditions, such as those lacking space or living in medically unsuitable housing.
• Band D is for households in insecure accommodation, such as those served a valid notice by their landlord.
• TNN (Transfers No Need) is for current tenants of Sutton Housing Partnership or one of our partner housing associations who wish to move but do not have a housing need.
• OPEX (Older People Exceptions) is for those aged 55 and over who do not qualify for any other Band but who wish to be considered for Older People's Accommodation.

Whenever a property becomes available we will advertise it on this website and state which Bands are able to bid for it. We decide this, and in which order the Bands will be prioritised, according to an annual Lettings Plan which sets out how many properties each Band should receive each year. 

Applicants can view the properties online and 'place a bid' for any they would like to be considered for. Once the advert has closed we will look at the shortlist. Bidders are prioritised automatically according to their Band and priority date. If you have been successful we will contact you to arrange a viewing. More details on the bidding process can be found here.

Additional Priority

Some properties will also attract additional priority for certain types of applicant, such as:

• Ground floor properties - priority is given to applicants who have a medical recommendation for a ground floor property
• Older People's Accommodation - Priority is given to applicants who have a medical recommendation for this type of accommodation
• Large properties (3 or 4 double bedrooms) - priority is given to large households. 

Each advert will give details of any additional priority rules that are in place.

 

How long will I have to wait?

There is a shortage of affordable housing in London, therefore waiting times can be long. As a general guide, the minimum waiting times we would expect for each Band are:

 

Bedrooms needed	1	2	3	4
Band B	5 years +	6 years	8 years	4 years
Band C/C+	5 years +	10 years	10 years +	10 years +
Band D	5 years +	10 years +	10 years +	10 years +

There are no plans to allocate properties to the TNN Band this year therefore we cannot currently estimate the waiting time.

How do I apply?

Applications are made online via the Sutton Home Choice website. Once your application has been submitted, you will usually hear from us within 4 weeks when we will write to you to request proof of your circumstances. You should receive the outcome of your application within 12 weeks from the date the application was submitted. To make an application, please click here.

Once we have made our initial assessment we will write to you, either to inform you that your application has not been accepted or to request further information and proof of your circumstances. 

 

Haig Housing

Armed Forces personnel, as well as their widows/widowers or separated partners, may be eligible to apply for social housing through Haig Housing’s register. Haig Housing have accommodation throughout the UK, the nearest to Sutton being in Morden. For more information on the scheme, criteria and how to apply please visit www.haighousing.org.uk