How does the Council allocate properties?

The Council operate a choice based lettings scheme. Most properties that become available for letting are advertised weekly in the 'Choice Homes' magazines and on the website elcchoicehomes.org.uk. Eligible applicants on the Housing Register, who are not deferred, can bid (apply) for individual properties that are advertised.

To ensure that we fulfil our legal duties to give reasonable preference to those groups specified in legislation, all properties will be advertised as being available to those applicants (including Council tenant transfer applicants) in the Priority Homeseeker (pH) category.

All properties will also usually be open to bids from those people in the Tenant Seeking a Transfer (T) category. However, the number of people in this category who are rehoused is limited to no more than 5 percent of the total number of households rehoused every year. Because of this, sometimes properties may only be available to Priority Homeseekers.

You may make bids for any property that is advertised as being available to your particular applicant category. This can be done either by telephoning the bidding hotline, by text or on-line at the East London Lettings Company (ELLC) website. The Choice Homes magazine and the website will advice on how to make bids. You must make a bid before the closing date, which will be stated in the property advertisements.

When bidding closes, lists are drawn up of bids that have been received for each property. If you have bid for a property, your position on the list will usually depend on the length of time you have been continuously registered on the Housing Register. Applicants will be listed in registration date order, which means that the applicant who has been registered the longest on the Housing Register will be at the top of the list.

There are certain housing applicant groups that still receive direct offers of accommodation and receive priority because the are unable to move quickly under the choice based lettings scheme, but it is in the Council's interest that they can do so. Further information can be found in the section titled 'Are some offers of accommodation still made by Council Officers?'.

Bids from tenants requiring rehousing as a result of the Canning Town Regeneration Scheme will be given priority above other applicants. If more than one Canning Town Regeneration Scheme applicant bids for a property, the bids will be prioritised in order of the date the applicants became tenants of the Council.

Final checks will then be made to confirm the eligibility of the applicants, and those applicants at the top of the list will be contacted to make arrangements for them to view the properties. If the applicant at the top of the list decides not to accept an offer of a property, it will then be offered to the applicant who is second on the list, and so on, until an offer is accepted.

You will not generally be penalised for refusing any offers of accommodation made to you through the Council's choice based lettings scheme.

How is my registration date calculated?