How do I apply for a house?
You can
By filling in the application form, you can be considered for housing by all the NAHR landlords.
Please read the housing application guide (PDF, 2.97Mb, 30 pages) before filling in your form. It tells you
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which landlords have houses which letting area
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where the different house types and sizes are located, and
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what proof you need to give us with your application.
We can help you fill in your application form if you have difficulty. All you need to do is contact one of our offices. We will also provide support services such as a language interpreter or a signer if you ask us.
What is the NAHR?
The NAHR is a shared (or common) housing register. A common housing register is where two or more landlords agree to have a shared pool of housing applicants that they let their empty houses to. This means that people don't need to fill in a form for each landlord. The NAHR saves you time and makes applying for a house simpler and fairer.
The landlords taking part in NAHR are the council and the three biggest housing associations in North Ayrshire:
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Cunninghame Housing Association
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Irvine Housing Association, and
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ANCHO
Together, the four landlords own and manage around 97% of the social housing in North Ayrshire.
'Social housing' is the term used to refer to affordable rented housing provided by councils and housing associations
Who can apply for housing?
Anyone aged 16 years or over has the legal right to join a housing register. You can apply on your own, as a single applicant, or with other people and have a joint application.
How is my housing need assessed?
Your housing need is assessed in line with the North Ayrshire Housing Allocation Policy which is a shared (or common) allocation policy. This is the set of rules that the NAHR landlords have agreed to use to let their empty houses. Your housing need is assessed once and you don't have different levels of points with different landlords.
The policy is a 'group plus points' policy. Your application is placed in one of seven groups and can be awarded points for various recognised housing needs. You can read about the policy in the allocation policy summary (PDF, 2.97 Mb, 12 pages).
What if I or someone who lives with me has a health issue or disability that affects the type of housing I need?
You will need to fill in and send us an Accessible Housing Application (PDF, 229 Kb, 12 pages). You should only fill in this form if :
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you have already filled in an Application for Housing
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your health issue or disability impacts on your ability to function independently within your current home
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a move to a different type or size of home would alleviate some or all of the difficulties caused within your current home
If you need an accessible house e.g. a house with a wet floor shower or a ramp at the front door, you also should fill in a Disabled Persons Housing Service (DPHS) Questionnaire (PDF, 32.3Kb). The DPHS Guide For Applicants (PDF 27.4Kb) helps you fill this in. Your details will be placed onto the DPHS register which we use to match accessible houses to the needs to disabled people.
How do the landlords decide which of the groups to allocate their empty houses to?
Each of the landlords have their own letting plan. A letting plan is a plan which determines how many lets go to each of the seven housing needs groups. You can contact any of the landlords and ask for a copy of their letting plan.
Can I be prevented from receiving offers because of my previous conduct?
The NAHR also has a shared (or common) suspension policy (PDF, 122Kb). This is the set of rules that the landlords have agreed to use to determine when not to offer housing to applicants. This is known as suspending applicants from offers of housing. We suspend people who have broken the terms of a current or former tenancy agreement with any social or private landlord. We would suspend you for owing your current or former landlord money relating to your tenancy such as rent arrears, as well as for previous anti-social behaviour or breaking the terms your tenancy agreement. If you are suspended from receiving offers of housing we will write to you and tell you the reasons for the suspension, how long you will be suspended for and what you need to do to remove the suspension.
If you have debt relating to a current or former tenancy you can seek advice and assistance from our Debt Counselling Service
What are my chances of receiving an offer of housing from the NAHR?
Demand for social housing in North Ayrshire far outstrips supply. We have around 6000 applicants on NAHR. In our first year of operation from 1 June 2009 to 31 May 2010, we let 1452 houses. 1048 were council houses, 385 belong to the NAHR housing associations and 19 are owned by the other housing associations in North Ayrshire
Your prospects for receiving an offer will depend upon the following factors:
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the number of properties that become available for let
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your level of housing need compared to other applicants
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the landlords, letting areas and house types you have selected
Once you have sent us your application for housing, you will receive a letter from us detailing your group and points assessment. You can then arrange an interview to discuss your prospects for housing by contacting one of our offices.
Staff at our area offices will be able to tell you
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what the availability is like for the house types and letting areas you have selected
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whether or not there is a realistic chance of receiving an offer
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what you can do to improve your prospects
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about other housing options that you could consider
You will need to fill in an Online Application Declaration (PDF, 35.5Kb) if you apply online. This is so that you can authorise us to request tenancy references from your landlord. This is only needed if your current or previous landlord (last 3 years) is not one of the NAHR landlords.