Grant Shapps plans to cut £4 billion in housing maintenance
Posted by admin | Uncategorized | Posted on April 27th, 2012
During these times of austerity, government is looking at ways to make cuts in social programmes across the board. In the latest effort to cut spending on housing Minister Grant Shapps has instituted the Tenant Cashback scheme in which Council tenants can potentially pocket up to £500 each year for making simple repairs or fixing decorating issues instead of calling on maintenance teams.
A rough average of £1 thousand is spent each year on housing properties and this amount would virtually be cut in half if tenants could learn to make some of their own minor repairs. Not only will this benefit landlords but it is estimated that it can shave as much as £4 billion off the social housing budget.
Mr.Shapps also believes that many tenants can actually get an apprenticeship in just this way. Not only will they be saving government half of its budget on housing repairs and earning money for themselves, but also it might be the great beginning to a new career. It is unknown how many people actually have aptitude for plumbing and housing repairs since they have never tried it.
Some believe that leaving minor repairs in the hands of tenants will encourage them to take better care of their properties as well. For those tenants who are not able to make small repairs for themselves community groups are empowered to do the same thing. Neighbors who are handicapped, for instance, can get assistance from fellow residents.
The best way to save money on making repairs is to find a cheap source of products so that repairing leaky taps does not cost an arm and a leg. There are a number of online merchants such as theplumbstore that carried products it just above wholesale cost and are for sale to the general public. Purchasing anything from bathroom taps to shower rails becomes easy because parts are delivered right to the tenant’s doorstep.http://www.theplumbstore.com/ to find out more.