Social housing may be cheap, but we pay the difference in costs
A young tenant has given an insight into her DIY journey to transform her social housing unit, which has so far proven to be an ‘epic fail’.
Becki recently moved into her home and is trying to renovate her house on a budget, but she admitted it’s been a “total DIY disaster” so far.
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The mother of four has created a TikTok account to document her decorating adventures, and her videos have gone viral.
In one clip, she showed how her room was a “hot pink mess” as she attempted a “budget bedroom makeover.”
She wrote: “Today, while trying to renovate my bedroom in my social housing unit, I had a total DIY disaster.
“I knew this budget bedroom makeover was going to be tough, but I didn’t expect this.”
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Becki, who bears the name of @justbeckii on TikTok, she wanted to paint over the pink walls that were already there when she moved into the house.
But she admitted that her DIY skills could be enough to “make a professional shudder.”
Becki started applying floor protection to “finally make good progress on repairing these walls.”
She then revealed that she had first “gone into the kitchen” and then “smeared paint on the walls.”
‘Cutting in’ is a technique where you draw the outline of walls and ceilings before painting the rest of the surface. This is also called starting with a border.
She said of her recordings: ‘I felt a bit smug, but it all seemed to be going well.
“But behind her a disaster was happening.”
‘Budget bedroom makeover’
However, air bubbles formed in the paint, which flaked off almost immediately.
She said: “So naive, I mean, it’s a town hall, of course these walls are going to be hell. If it was that simple, they would fix them for us.”
While it was positive, it helped “get rid of the pink,” but not in the way Becki “thought or hoped.”
She ended the video by saying, “So now back to the drawing board.”
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The video received over 200 comments, with others sharing their DIY experiences as well.
Someone wrote: “The same thing happened to us when we moved into our first house. No one could tell us why.
“No builders, no decoration centers. We decided to plaster it again.”
Becki responded by asking, “Did the re-plastering go well?”
‘Get rid of the pink’
To which the DIY enthusiast wrote: “Yes, it went perfectly and we had Nice walls again, but I am so annoyed that we paid so much and no one could tell us that the problem was that we were putting matte paint on silk paint.”
Another asked: “How about textured wallpaper?”
And Becki replied, “I finally got my walls fixed, they look great now. All I need to do now is put up some wainscoting and then I can finally start painting!”
A third wrote: “We bought a social housing unit and had the same problem when it was re-plastered.
“The new plaster had cracked and had to be reapplied.”
And Becki replied, “Oh dear! What a nightmare. I’ve been waiting a week for it to dry out tomorrow, so I can’t wait to get going again. Hopefully there won’t be any more problems then.”
How can I get social housing?
To apply for social housing, you must complete an application form and submit it to your municipality.
To find your municipality, you can simply use the municipality finder on the government website.
Once you have access to your municipality’s website, you will find guidelines there for completing your application.
After you register, you will likely be placed on a waiting list.
Please note that even if you are placed on the waiting list, this does not guarantee an offer of social housing.
Your local authority can also advise you on how to continue living in your current home and resolve any issues, such as problems with a private landlord or mortgage.
You are eligible for application for social housing if you are a British citizen living in the UK, provided you have not recently lived abroad.
Each municipality has its own local rules about who is eligible to be placed on the housing list for its area, but these rules are based on a system of ‘points’ or ‘bands’.
For example, you will probably be the first to be offered a home if you:
- are homeless
- living in cramped conditions
- have a medical condition that is aggravated by your current home
- trying to escape domestic violence
Once you are high enough on the municipality’s waiting list, you will be contacted as soon as a home becomes available.
In some municipalities you can submit an application from the age of 18, in other municipalities you can submit an application from the age of 16.
EU workers and their families and refugees may also be eligible.
You will be allocated social housing through a points system. Depending on your housing needs, you may be given low priority.
Once you are high enough on the waiting list, the municipality will contact you about available housing.
There is no limit to how long you will be on the waiting list.
