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Frequently asked questions
If you have any further questions or need advice, please see
-your neighbourhood officer
-visit us at head office
-staff at your local neighbourhood centre
- I am a Poplar HARCA tenant and want to move, what do I need to do?
- What is Choise Based Lettings?
- Where can I find a list of available homes?
- What is a ‘bid’ and how do I do it?
- What happens after I bid?
- How many offers can I make?
- What else can I do to get rehoused?
I am a Poplar HARCA tenant and want to move, what do I need to do?
You can apply for a transfer. To do this you must complete an Application to join Tower Hamlets Housing List, also known as a ‘transfer form’. These forms can be collected from any Poplar HARCA housing office, or any housing office in Tower Hamlets. You can also download an application form by clicking on the pdf link at the end of the FAQ section.
You must return you completed transfer form to the Poplar HARCA Lettings Section at Poplar HARCA’s head office, 167a East India Dock Road, E14 0EA for it to be processed.
Once it is received it will be date stamped, and this date will be used as your ‘application registration date’. It will then go through the following processes:
Your application form will be registered onto the lettings computer system.
Your application form will be sent from lettings to your neighbourhood officer for a home visit to be arranged. Your neighbourhood officer will need to see various documents including proof of identification for yourself and all your household members.
Your transfer form will be returned to our lettings section for it to be made ‘live’ after the visit is complete and all the required documents provided.
Once your application is made ‘live’ lettings will send you a letter to inform you of your Application reference number, which you will need to use when bidding for available homes via Choice Based Lettings (CBL).
What is Choise Based Lettings?
Choice Based Lettings (CBL) was
launched in Tower Hamlets in 2002 and is the system that is used by
the council and its partner landlords to allocate available
homes each week.
Available homes are allocated in priority order and applicants on the Tower Hamlets housing list are prioritised according to their circumstances and needs and placed in one of the four groups referred to above.
Available homes, whether owned by the council or partner landlords, are advertised each week and those registered on the Tower Hamlets housing list can select the
homes that they feel are suitable and want to be considered for by
placing ‘bids’.
CBL gives the applicant the option to choose the
area, property type, and floor level of the homes they are interested
in.
Where can I find a list of available homes?
Available homes are advertised each week in the East End Life newspaper, on-line at the Tower Hamlets Homeseekers Website (this link opens in the same window as the Poplar HARCA website) and in Poplar HARCA’s Head Office and council offices throughout the borough.
The adverts will usually show a
photograph of the property together with the name of the street or
building and a brief description, which includes the size and floor level. More details are available on-line including information
about the local area and a map showing its location.
If you see an available homes that you
would like to be considered for you should place a ‘bid’.
What is a ‘bid’ and how do I do it?
A bid is your indicator that you
place against any available home that you wish to be considered for. You must have a live application on
the Tower Hamlets housing list to bid.
You can bid by:
1. Telephone – 0845 270 2400
To bid by telephone you will need:
Your date of birth
Your Application Reference Number
To know where your hash (#) key is
The reference numbers of the available homess you want to bid for.
2. Internet – www.thhs.org.uk (this link opens in the same window as the Poplar HARCA website)
To bid on the Internet you will need:
Your date of birth
Your Application Reference Number
3. Coupon – Available in the East End Life and at Poplar HARCA’s head office and council offices.
To bid with a coupon you will need to
complete it with your personal details:
Your full name
Your date of birth
Your full address
Your Application Reference Number
What happens after I bid?
After you have placed your bid you will be included on all the match lists for the available homes you have bid for. Your position on the match list will vary depending on which community group you are in and the number of other applicants that have also bid for the same available home(s).
Because of the high number of bids
we receive each week (average 20,000) we are unable to contact
applicants if they are unsuccessful. We will only contact applicants
if we are able to make them an offer of a new home.
If you are a Poplar HARCA tenant and would like to know your position on the list for a particular available home or your most recent bids, please contact our lettings section on 020 7510 0500.
How many offers can I make?
Tower Hamlets no longer operates a
one-offer policy, so if you are made an offer but decide to refuse
it, you can continue to bid for other available homes without your
application being affected.
But there is no guarantee how long it will take for another offer to be made, so if you are made an offer you should consider it carefully before refusing it.
Please note: If you have been granted a discretionary enhanced priority for rehousing (e.g. management priority/keyworker priority) and refuse an offer of rehousing this priority may be withdrawn. If this applies to you please always check with your lettings section before refusing an offer.
What else can I do to get rehoused?
There are other housing options that you can apply for:
Homeswappers
(mutual exchange)
As a social landlord (Housing
Association) tenant you may exchange your tenancy with a council or
another social landlord tenant, subject to permission being granted
by the respective landlords.
A new online service called
Homeswappers is available for tenants to advertise their
properties for potential swap partners. You can access the
Homeswappers website at www.homeswapper.co.uk
to register your details. Once you have completed the registration
process and received confirmation you can begin to search for
and be matched for suitable homes in your chosen areas. If you do
not have access to a home computer you can use the one's in the foyer
of Poplar HARCA’s head office at 167a East India Dock Road, E14
0EA, or use computers in the internet cafes at
your local neighbourhood centres.
When you have found someone that agrees
to swap tenancies with you, you should inform your neighbourhood officer and ask for a mutual exchange form to fill in.
HomeBuy
The Government has introduced a scheme called HomeBuy to help people get a foot on the property ladder. This includes the new expanded Open Market HomeBuy launched by the Government on 2 October 2006. For further information on HomeBuy visit the Housing Corporation website at www.housingcorp.gov.uk.
To find out if you might be eligible, you should contact the HomeBuy agent for the East London area which is Metropolitan Housing Group: 0845 230 8099.
Self-Build
There are often schemes in Tower Hamlets that allow applicants to build their own home. The schemes vary and some have an element of shared ownership. Often applicants do not need technical skills as training is provided. These schemes will be advertised in the local press when they are available.
