£100m for housing estates

MORE than £100 million will be spent repairing run-down housing estates because they have been neglected for so long.
A massive five-year refurbishment programme is under way and it is currently costing up to £80,000 a property to repair some homes.
This week Housing Minister Terry Le Main and members of his department showed the Health, Social Security and Housing Scrutiny Panel around the Island’s estates.
Speaking to the JEP at Clos de Roncier, panel chairman Senator Alan Breckon said that the refurbishment programme was long overdue. ‘The States have ignored their housing stock and they haven’t maintained them,’ he said. (from JEP)

Why does this sound so familiar... ah yes the Guernsey States did the same...

£80,000 per home!

I WISH I was in a position to live in the luxury of States accommodation; low rent, high maintenance subsidized energy bills.

not such low rent in guernsey i can assure you .our rents are based on a quarter of gross income up to a maximum rent figue which is based on the reinstatement value of the property .a rebate is paid if you cannot afford the full rent.

Thistle wrote:not such low rent in guernsey i can assure you .our rents are based on a quarter of gross income up to a maximum rent figue which is based on the reinstatement value of the property .a rebate is paid if you cannot afford the full rent.

My rent is 66% of my gross income, with no rebate being available from the taxpayer and I don't enjoy the subsidized heating Jersey's States tenants get either; so you'll forgive me if I whine that yours sounds like a good deal.

we don't receive a heating allowance just because we are states tenants.only householders on supplementary benefit qualify for the allowance.

I really have no right to say anything as I have never been a resident in a States House - but when my late hubby and I were buying our house at 18% + interst - he lost his job - I was working so no-one in authourity would help us.......if we had been in a private rental situation we would not have got a reduction in our rent because he was not earning - but I have been told by my cousin who has a states house that their rent would have been reduced - is this so???

karma,it would depend on the income of your cousin how much rent rebate they would have received. lots of things are taken into consideration when you live in a states house for example if you have a son/daughter living with you who is over the age of 21 you would be asked to pay £40 a week for each of them on top of your rent.for someone under 21 or on benefits living in your house the figure is £20 a week on top of assessed rent. for children living in your house of school age there is a reduction of about £5 per week for each child.so as you can see lots of variables.householders on supplementary benefit receive the biggest reduction re rent rebate but would still have to pay the above mentioned charges for the adult family living with them

Thanks for that Thistle - I think I understand doh!!!!!

Thistle wrote:we don't receive a heating allowance just because we are states tenants.only householders on supplementary benefit qualify for the allowance.

I wasn't talking about the heating allowances that some State's tenants qualify for, I was talking about the fact that housing have absorbed the large rises in electricity/fuel costs for the heating of States accommodation; having a private landlord I get hit twice, having to a fund this absorbing as a tax-payer and having the full rise on my own bills.

the housing department in guernsey would never fund anything like this .maybe it is time for the people of jersey to say why should we be funding electricity bills for tenants in social housing .