What’s your opinion on multi-occupied homes? (From Daily Echo)
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What’s your opinion on multi-occupied homes?
3:28pm Thursday 26th January 2012 in Readers' Letters
Southampton City Council has published a formal consultation on its draft houses in multiple occupation supplementary planning document.
This document affects every student who wants to live away from halls, everyone who can’t afford the rent for a one-bed flat and every single landlord who lets houses and flats in Southampton.
We are particularly concerned by the swingeing proposals for ALL rented properties in Swaythling, Bassett and Portswood wards.
We are preparing a submission and would like to hear from anyone who has an opinion on houses in multiple occupation and their impact in our city.
J ROGER BELL, Southern Landlords Association
Comments(14)
loosehead
says...
9:17pm Fri 27 Jan 12
I've lived in a bedsit & it was cr=p damp every where landlords fixing the meters so you were paying a fortune which they were pocketing & if you had the wrong neighbours you got robbed when ever you were at work. I also hated ABBA but 5 of them would play 5 different songs at the same time
Home Rule for England
says...
1:34pm Sat 28 Jan 12
Students should be made stay in University accommodation!
100%HANTSBOY
says...
6:24pm Sat 28 Jan 12
The Landlords should be ashamed of themselves for the amount of decay they are creating in an area that was once a pleasure to live and grow up in for many families.
I have lots of friends and relations that have been chased out of Portswood and Highfield (me included) because of the Student scurge.
The Landlords earn a fortune from these dwellings and should be made by your association and the Council to clean up their act and take more responsibility for the Ghettos they are creating.
I personally left Portswood as I was a night worker and apart from getting no sleep,I couldn't park my car within 2 roads of where I lived.
I totally agree with the above contributor,create dedicated accommodation within the University bounderies or perhaps a student village somewhere like Old Stoneham Lane/Monks Brook playing fields...anywhere away from hard working tax paying residents.
GIVE US BACK OUR SUBURBS
loosehead
says...
9:34pm Sat 28 Jan 12
100%HANTSBOY wrote:I would love to buy one of those gorgeous homes in Gordan Avenue( if they're still there?) but I wouldn't if the next hose ( semi) was still flats. I do agree once those flats at Ocean village & Woolston are built no more family homes should be allowed to be knocked down or converted into flats.
I grew up in Portswood and it breaks my heart to see all the beautiful family houses turned into concrete fronted Student dwellings.
The Landlords should be ashamed of themselves for the amount of decay they are creating in an area that was once a pleasure to live and grow up in for many families.
I have lots of friends and relations that have been chased out of Portswood and Highfield (me included) because of the Student scurge.
The Landlords earn a fortune from these dwellings and should be made by your association and the Council to clean up their act and take more responsibility for the Ghettos they are creating.
I personally left Portswood as I was a night worker and apart from getting no sleep,I couldn't park my car within 2 roads of where I lived.
I totally agree with the above contributor,create dedicated accommodation within the University bounderies or perhaps a student village somewhere like Old Stoneham Lane/Monks Brook playing fields...anywhere away from hard working tax paying residents.
GIVE US BACK OUR SUBURBS
Maybe it should be council policy to refuse planning permission & try to get these properties converted into homes & move families from blocks of flats
Polygonia
says...
8:05pm Sun 29 Jan 12
However, it is the HMO dwellers who drive the longer term residents away and the Labour Government should have brought in Planning control ten years ago. It is the usual story of those in the frontline of the war zone being the casualties.
loosehead
says...
9:46pm Sun 29 Jan 12
I've lived in bedsits & I've rented out to houses.
the rentals ended up costing me a fortune as the tenants were on the Social & they wrecked them.
If the choice was take a run down property do it up make a decent profit & sell it.
We should have a city plan of family housing areas, student areas & only certain areas for apartments & of course commercial & industrial. these areas would have to stay seperate
bigfella777
says...
2:28pm Mon 30 Jan 12
I would rather live in the Polygon than any of the council estates with all the white trash.
Polygonia
says...
3:17pm Mon 30 Jan 12
It therefore means that the majority of people in an area have the same job ( student ? ) lifestyle or housing type. I agree that other districts are awful and you are right to point that out.
100%HANTSBOY
says...
6:48pm Mon 30 Jan 12
Polygonia wrote:I think you'll find that any damage is covered by the Students losing their deposits. As for the mattresses and "equipment" that needs replacing,are these the same things that usually end up in the front garden or on the pavement every time there is a change of residency?
There are a lot of expenses for student landlords as some students do damage to the houses before they leave, mattresses and some equipment, furniture need renewing annually.
However, it is the HMO dwellers who drive the longer term residents away and the Labour Government should have brought in Planning control ten years ago. It is the usual story of those in the frontline of the war zone being the casualties.
loosehead
says...
9:24pm Mon 30 Jan 12
What I'm against is taking good family homes & either making them HMO's or Flats or bulldozing them to put up blocks of flats.
Maybe the Landlords should be made more responsible for their tenants.
That should include anti social behaviour
If the Landlord knows he'll get into trouble he/she might vet their tenants more carefully & lay down some terms & conditions the tenants would have to abide by
Shergold
says...
6:43pm Mon 13 Feb 12
I have lived where there are some flats rented out and others are owner occupiers in the same block. There are always more problems coming from the renters than the owner occupiers over the yrs.
I have noticed over the last 8 yrs, that renters on average will be SO much noisier, they DO NOT care about the state of the building and WHO has to pay the service charges. They are very obnotious when challenged, and seem to think that they are paying the same amount as the owner occupiers - which they are not.
eg,. they think it is ok to mark the walls, or leave their beer cans, or smoke dope/fags and leave cigarette butts anywhere they please.
Even in the whole road they will be MUCH noisier and not give a **** who they wake up either at any time they think is ok by them.They can be VERY selfish in the way they park as well - no matter where they come from!!! and they can lie about any damage that is done as well.
If this legislation means that the numbers will be controlled then GOOD!! it is way over due!!! The Universities should get more accomodation organised. If an employer is relying on accomodation being available, then make sure thier lifestyle does not clash with the surrounding people who have lived there longer, or find a dedicated houses/flats, ((This what employers used to do yrs ago and there was never the problems that locals experience today))
Landlords need to STOP looking at the bottom line of how much money I get, and start looking at WHO am I renting to? no credit check in the world, will tell you if they are good people. just cos you get your money at the end of the month does not tell you if they are keeping the others up with their loud music.
In my small block of the flats there is ONE landlady that actually REDUCED THE RENT to keep the best tenant anyone could want. I AM NOT KIDDING!!!
She had her share of troubled tenants, and choice to LOWER the rent to keep a GOOD tenant on.
So there you have it landlords!! take heed!!
pureenglishuk
says...
1:56pm Wed 22 Feb 12
Polygonia
says...
2:07pm Wed 22 Feb 12
pureenglishuk wrote:It sounds as if you are not likely to go out and get drunk and behave like some young students heading home in the early hours of the morning.
I would just like to say some of the comments on here have really angered me. I am a 27 year old graduate who works 6 days a week as an English langauge teacher/proofreader and on my one day off I spend the whole day scriptwriting. I come from a working class family and I was brought up on a council estate. (Not my fault!) I have always strived to have a better life and I work so hard, yet I don't have anyone to support me or help me. I have to live in shared accomodation or bedsits as that is all I can realistically afford at the moment. I am an honest, hardworking person. I can assume there are many more people like me, yet we are insulted. Let me tell you, I would love to live in a big happy family home. For me that is impossible; I don't have a big happy family to share with. Most people in shared houses don't want to live like that, but they are trying to 'better' themselves. As someone mentioned it's the long-term unemployed living on council estates who probably cause more trouble (but I have no right to insult them) This is the year 2012 and the majority of people are just doing what they can to get by.
Only those who have done that in Polygon, Portswood, Bevois Valley or Highfield in the past 20 years need to feel uneasy about some opinions of them.
Having lived in rented houses and flats, and shared houses I can assure you that my behaviour does not change as I move around the country. It is possible to be a good neighbour in while living in an HMO.
Goldenwight says...
4:03pm Thu 26 Jan 12