Social Housing List questions

grumbleweed

Hi all, can someone with experience please offer opinion? We are meeting with our bank shortly to discuss either voluntary sale or surrender. I have questions regarding being put on social housing list.
1. We require a local connection (as we dont currently live in area we wish to apply for).
My sister has lived in the area we were going to apply to-South Dublin Co Council-for 30 years. I had read a family member was reason enough for Local Connection. We had spoken to several people in the council regarding application outlining our circumstance and connection and were sent out the form. Then today when I rang about something else, when I again explained our Local Connection, I was told that having a sister live there would not be reason enough. Other councils we have looked at online advise family member is reason enough provided they are living there more than 2 years. Is it possible I have now been misinformed or does anyone with experience of SDCC know?
2. We previously lived in an area that we thought was Dublin 12. It seems now, it may have changed to Dublin 24. How do we find out? Have rung land registry to no avail.
3. My husband was born and reared in Dublin City Co Council and having spoken with them today, it appears (maybe) as if this will be reason for Local Connection-however none of his family live there anymore. He went to school there and lived there until his mid 20's. Anyone any idea if this is local connection enough?
4. We are unable to continue to pay all the bills in our current home (that we still own at present).
Our central heating system keeps breaking down and we cannot afford to get it repaired-it is now going again but its a "wing and a prayer" job and could go again at any time. We have 2 small children and we have now had to invest in oil filled rads for their rooms (not as a just in case but for an invetible breakdown).
To pay all the bills, we now cannot afford to tax our car. We cant sell our car and get something smaller as there is alot wrong with it, we cant afford to get it fixed. It will break down quite soon if we dont get the work done.
We have plumbing problems that are causing leaks quite often, and cannot afford a plumber.
We have a problem with sewarge smells coming into the house. We dont know if it is related to our septic tank or lack of proper ventilation in the house but again we cant get it fixed. The smell is appaling for a few days, then dies down again for a little while, then returns. There are certain rooms we cannot use more often than not, due to the smell.
Apart from all of this mess, the stress is causing serious problems to our marriage and my mental health. We are both out of work and have been in the MARP process for years and the mortgage in our opinion is now unsustainable.
We cant afford to stay in the house much longer. Yet we have no idea how long it might take to sell.
5. I am assuming we cant be placed on social housing list-therefore entitling us to rent allowance, until the house is sold. However, what if we cant stay there due to all the problems? Then we would be technically homeless even though we might still own a property that we cant live in?
I never thought for a minute that I would ever up homeless. The entire thing is heart breaking and distressing. Our kids are picking up on our obvious stress and at this stage I just want to get out of here and start again. We will lose everything as the house is in negative equity but our happiness has to be more important.
Anyways, help on any or all of the above would be greatly appreciated. For those who might want to chime in with anything nasty, please dont. I beg you. We have been through enough. We have worked all our lives, never been on unemployment benefit before this down turn and have begged and borrowed money for so many years to try and save our house. Now we want to move on and come to terms with it.
Thanks

pluto_322

Great sympathy with your plight; why not start with contacting your local citizen's information centre and then the money advice and budgeting service.

http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/money_and_tax/personal_finance/debt/

www.mabs.ie

Annasopra

I'd contact MABS first and then CIC