Are you living in a property that is too big for you?
'Small is Beautiful' is our incentive scheme to help you downsize to smaller accommodation; the incentive offers financial support and one to one support (where necessary) to help you prepare your move, moving and settling into your new home.
Our statistics have shown that there are over 870 tenants currently under-occupying family sized accommodation, overall the.
- demand for family sized accommodation is on the increase
- building of new family homes is set to fall
That means there is an increasing need for us to free up bigger family homes to meet demand.
If you are living in a West Kent property that is too big for you we hope our incentive scheme will be what you need to help you financially and to give you the help and support you need to downsize.
Our scheme includes paying you an incentive for downsizing from four, three or two bedroom properties. You also qualify if you downsize to another social landlord through the Sevenoaks District Housing Register.
Financial incentive:
The financial incentive depends on the size of accommodation you are moving from. Below are details of what you can choose to receive.
Moving from a four bedroom:
You can choose to receive:
- £3,000 payment or
- Removals organised and paid for, carpets up to the value of £600 plus a £1,000 payment when the move is complete (up to a total of £3,000).
Moving from a three bedroom::
You can choose to receive:
- £2,000 payment or
- Removals organised and paid for, carpets up to the value of £600 and £300 payment once the move is complete. (up to a total of £2,000)
Moving from a two bedroom:
You can choose to receive:
- £1,000 payment or
- Removals organised and paid for and carpets up to the value of £500.
Support available:
If you want to downsize but the thought of organising and moving on your own puts you off, then we can help by making referrals to put a tailored support service in place. The support available will depend on your needs but could include:
- Planning the move
- Applying for benefits, grants and loans
- Changing your address
- Reading meters and registering utilities
- Measuring and hanging curtains.
The support will normally be provided via our Emerald Service.
For more information on how you would qualify for additional support, or if you are interested in downsizing please contact your Neighbourhood Housing Officer.