I ve been offered a Hafod Housing Association Home Now what do I do? Hafod Housing Association

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1 I ve been offered a Hafod Housing Association Home Now what do I do? Hafod Housing Association

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3 Contents Page Making a Decision Page Acceptance Page Confirmation of Acceptance Page Refusal Page Nomination Page Removals Page Giving Notice to a current Landlord Page Signing Up Page Moving In Page Paying Rent Page Housing Benefit Page Contents Insurance Page Buying Furniture Page Decorating Page Pets Page Gas, Electric and Water bills etc Page Gas Safety Check and Electric Test Page Repairs Page Other Queries

4 I ve been offered a Hafod Home Now what do I do? Being offered a new home can be a stressful time and so we have put together a few tips, which should help you through the process. Making a Decision The first thing you will have to consider when you have been offered a property is whether you wish to accept it or not. You will have been provided details of the rent level for your property with your offer letter, a booklet on what it means to be a Hafod tenant, moving home checklist and an acceptance / refusal form. If the property you have been offered is on a site you will also have received information on its location. If you would like to know more about your prospective new home before making a decision, we advise you to contact your local Area Office where the staff will be more than happy to answer any queries you may have. 4- I ve been offered a Hafod Home Now what do I do?

5 Acceptance If you wish to accept your offer of a new home, you are urged to contact your Area Office as soon as possible to complete and return the acceptance form which was sent with your offer letter. Confirmation of Acceptance If you have accepted your offer of a new Hafod home and confirmed in writing your acceptance, you will receive an acknowledgement from the Association and a date will be proposed for you to view and sign for the tenancy of the property. In some cases, especially if your new home will be on a newly constructed site, the proposed date for you to sign for the tenancy may change. Once the Association is able to verify when you can sign for the tenancy of your new home, you will be notified in writing. Once you have signed for the tenancy of your property you can then begin to arrange to move. Refusal If you wish to refuse your offer of accommodation, you are urged to complete the refusal form giving your reasons why you have turned down your offer. This information will help the Association find the property that will suit your preferences. Nomination If you have been offered a Hafod Housing Association property via a local authority nomination you are advised to speak to the council after you have accepted the offer. If you are considering refusing the Association s offer of accommodation you are advised to discuss the implications with the council. I ve been offered a Hafod Home Now what do I do? - 5

6 Removals We would urge you not to arrange for removals to move your belongings into your new home until you have received your confirmation of when you can move in writing. Once you have received this letter, we urge you to begin the process as soon as possible. We have enclosed a useful Moving Home Checklist to help you through this process. Giving Notice to a current Landlord If you are currently renting a property prior to moving into your Hafod home, you are urged to give notice to your landlord that you will be moving. Signing Up Once you have accepted your offer of accommodation, you will be invited to sign your new tenancy agreement, either at your new home or in the Area Office. When you sign for your Hafod home, you will be provided a tenancy pack to help you settle into your new home. We hope you find this of assistance. If you wish to claim housing benefit to help pay for your rent you are advised to bring details of your earning or existing benefits to the tenancy agreement signing. Moving In You are reminded that you can only move into your new Hafod home when you have signed your new tenancy agreement and been given a commencement date for your tenancy to begin. Your tenancy agreement date is the day on which you are legally entitled to move into your new home. You are reminded that you will not be allowed to move into your new home or leave belongings in the property until you have signed your tenancy agreement and been given the keys to the property. 6- I ve been offered a Hafod Home Now what do I do?

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8 Paying Rent With your offer letter you will be provided with details of the weekly rental level for your Hafod home. For some properties a service charge will also be charged with your rent to cover services provided by the Association for the site. We review our rental levels and service charges once a year and any changes will take place in April. You will be notified of any change to your rental or service charge at least one month before any change takes place. We offer a variety of methods to help you pay your rent, these can be agreed with your Area Office when your tenancy begins. If you are on a low wage or state benefits, you may be entitled to housing benefit depending upon your personal circumstances, to help pay for your rent and service charges. Housing Benefit If you are in receipt of Housing Benefit you will be required to make a fresh claim for housing benefit from your new address. In addition If you receive any other benefits you are also advised to notify the appropriate agency of your new address. Contents Insurance You are strongly advised to take out an up to date policy. Sadly tenants who do not have contents insurance can experience considerable loss if they are the victims of fire or flood damage. Even smoke damage from a simple chip pan fire can be extensive as well as having a dramatic effect on fabrics, furnishings etc. Details of contents are available in a separate leaflet. Buying Furniture We advise you not to buy any furniture for your new home until you have signed the tenancy agreement and measured the rooms and spaces for such items. You are more than welcome to take measurements in your prospective new home when you view the property. In particular, kitchen spaces for cookers, fridge/freezers and washing machines/tumble driers should be measured prior to buying such goods. We also believe when buying beds, chairs / settees and wardrobes you should measure the size of the doorways to ensure your new furniture will fit into your new home. 8- I ve been offered a Hafod Home Now what do I do?

9 Decorating We would like to remind you that the internal decoration of your Hafod property will be your responsibility. All our properties should be in good decorative order, however, in some cases a decorating allowance may be offered where the Association feels that additional decoration is required. An offer of a decorating allowance will be put in writing at the time the offer of accommodation is made. We realise that whilst our property will be adequately decorated, you may wish to add your own decorative touches in order to turn the accommodation into your home. Alterations that you may wish to make to your property must be requested in writing and permission given in writing before you commence alterations. Pets All Hafod Tenants must have written permission to keep a pet at home. Permission is usually granted to those tenants who want to keep a pet at home where the property has a selfenclosed garden. It is our policy not to grant permission to those tenants who wish to have a pet such as a cat or dog - living in flats or maisonettes.

10 Gas, Electricity and Water Bills etc As a new tenant you will be responsible for arranging the supply of and paying for your gas, electric and water rates. Please ensure you contact the relevant organisation as soon as you move in to ensure your supply is switched on and arrange payments accordingly. You are also reminded that your council tax and television licence is your responsibility as well. Gas Safety Check and Electrical Test At the beginning of every new Hafod tenancy the Association will carry out a gas check with instruction and an electrical test to ensure your new home is safe. If the gas service and electrical test has not been carried out before you have moved in to your new home an appointment will be made to arrange this as soon as possible. If an appointment has been made it is very important you keep it. Repairs There will be occasions that your new home will require some minor repairs as you move in or just after. In such cases the Association will confirm any outstanding work required to your new home and provide you with a written schedule for the works required and timescales for completion. If you have any maintenance problems you can report them to: Hafod Housing Association Maintenance Department 93 Cardiff Road Taff s Well Cardiff CF15 7PL Tel Fax Office Hours: 9.00 am to 4.45 pm Emergencies can be reported outside of office hours using the same telephone number Tel Plumbing and Gas Central heating problems can be reported directly to our contractor. The telephone number will be supplied to you when you sign for your tenancy together with a booklet on Looking After Your Home.

11 Other Queries If you have any problems or queries please do not hesitate to contact your local area housing office: Office Hours: 9.00 am to 4.30 pm Taff s Well Office Central Team 93 Cardiff Road Taff s Well Cardiff CF15 7PL Tel St Mellons Office East Team 76 Heol Maes Eirwg St Mellons Cardiff CF3 0JZ Tel Bridgend Office West Team Queen Street Bridgend CF31 1HX Tel I ve been offered a Hafod Home Now what do I do? - 11

12 Hafod Housing Association Registered as a Charitable Housing Association under the Industrial and Provident Societies Act NO 18766R Registered with the Welsh Assembly Government NO L034 Produced by design@bridgend D/ZHA