Housing applicants who unreasonably refuse two offers of a new home are to have their applications deferred for a year, councillors have ruled.

Aberdeen City Council's Housing and Environment committee voted 10 – 4 to double the deferment period for those who make two inappropriate or unreasonable refusals of properties from six months to a year, in a bid to speed up the letting of council housing and cut waiting lists.

Housing applicants or home-movers who make two such refusals will have their application put on hold for a year.

The deferment policy is intended to encourage applicants to be clear about their choices for homes and the expectations they have about the properties available to them.

Housing and Environment convener Councillor Aileen Malone said: "When people make their application, they are given information about the house types and areas available and are asked to select the type of property they would like to live in and where. They can change that selection while they are on the waiting list.

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"People who refuse offers of housing for flippant reasons hold up the process for others on the waiting list. We are seeing cases where people want to live in a particular area, but they turn down an offer of housing simply because they don't want to live on a particular street in that area.

"They should know that when they turn down two offers they will have to wait for a year before being made another one."

Vice-convener Mark McDonald said: "We are in the situation now where we don't have the flexibility within our housing stock to allow people to make unreasonable refusals on reasonable offers.

"I don't think the existing six month period of deferral is enough of a deterrent. This will send out a clear message that we do not have the flexibility in our housing stock for people to make unreasonable refusals."

Council staff ask for feedback from applicants who turn down an offer of housing to try to ensure that future offers made meet their requirement.

People applying for council homes are invited to change the areas and types of housing they wish to live in, to avoid having their application deferred in the future.

Reasons given for refusing a property, which would count towards the deferment of an application include: not interested in the area; not interested in the block; not interested in the street; area is too hilly; now wants/no longer wants a garden; central heating type or wants a different size property.

(GK/BMcC)