If you have been matched to a Lancaster City Council property, then a member of the Ideal Choice Homes team will be in contact with you within five days. 

If you have been nominated to one of our partner Registered Providers of Social Housing, then we will have given your details to them for them to contact you directly. 

Have you changed your phone number or email address? If you have, then let us know straight away. Most housing providers will contact you by email so make sure the address on your application is correct and that you regularly check your email account for any contact from them. If you do not reply to their email within the time period they specify, they will move onto the next nominee we have provided them with. 

Most housing providers will advertise properties during the notice period, this means that it is usually at least four weeks from the time of the advert until they will get the keys back from the outgoing tenant to start any repair work required to the property before it is ready for reletting. Sometimes there can be delays with the keys being returned and work being undertaken. Therefore, you may not hear for a couple of weeks. If you do not hear within two weeks, then let us know and we can contact the housing provider for an update. 

If you have been provisionally offered a Lancaster City Council property, we will start the pre-tenancy process with you straight away and discuss what support can be provided. 

All our properties are unfurnished and no white goods (cooker, fridge, freezer, washing machine etc) are provided, apart from in category two Independent Living schemes where a cooker is provided. 

Flooring is only provided in the kitchen and bathroom. There may be some occasions where the previous occupier has left carpet in the property that can be reused by the new tenant, but you should prepare for having to provide your own floor coverings and start saving for these. 

We can assist tenants with access to our rented furniture scheme, where you can rent furniture, white goods and other household items and a service charge is added to your property. If you receive help to pay your rent from housing benefit or Universal Credit, this is a payable service charge so they may cover some or all of the cost of this, depending on your income. An affordability assessment will be undertaken to ensure that you can afford this service charge. 

We would advise that you speak to the social landlord directly and see if they can arrange a payment plan with you or if there is any assistance they can provide. 

If...you are working with the Housing Options team because you are homeless or threatened with homelessness, then ask them if they can assist with paying the rent in advance for you. 

If...you are living in a supported housing scheme, speak to your key worker and see what assistance they can provide.  

If...you can have a need to move and claim housing benefit or the housing element of Universal Credit, you may be able to apply for a Discretionary Housing Payment (DHP). Have a look at our website for more information