COUNCIL house tenants in Luton who agree to move to a smaller property will be offered £2,000 for each bedroom they lose in a new incentive scheme.
The decision was made at a Luton Borough Council Executive Committee meeting on Monday, in the hope it will address problems of overcrowding and under-occupancy in the town.
There will also be a loft-conversion loan of up to £30,000 for families in privately owned over-crowded homes to ‘maximise their living space’, which Councillor Tom Shaw believes is the first scheme of its kind in the country.
Councillor Shaw said: “Our survey found people are scared of moving. Getting new carpets, putting up curtains, sorting out telephone connections and so on is all very daunting. This new scheme means we can offer people £2,000 per bedroom to downsize, but if they prefer, we reduce that to £1,000 and manage everything for them. So it’s not just a financial incentive, it’s a service.
“It’s for older people who have lived in the same two or three-bed house 25 years or so, whose family have all grown up and moved away. They might be worried about moving but with this scheme we can do everything for them.
“If they don’t want to do it, they don’t have to but I think the take-up will be quite high. It’s about moving older people out of houses that are too big for them so we can house the younger families who desperately need the space.”
It is estimated that 30 per cent of households in Luton are under-occupying their council homes and last year there were 228 families waiting for a four-bedroom property, but only two of the council’s 114 four-bed homes became available.
Luton resident Derek Borino said: “Great idea – my family of six live in a two-bed house and I know someone who lives on their own in a three-bed house who would love to move but the way it is at the minute bidding on homes is very hard when you live in certain areas where people don’t want to swap.”
However, resident Neil Jones said: “Council housing should not be a right for life. As people’s circumstances change they should move down into smaller homes without any payments.”
Many tenants in larger houses have a secure tenancy, which means they have the right to remain in the properties.
There are currently 1,864 households in Luton in a private or social rent property too small for their needs.
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