Frequently asked questions

How do I apply for a Livin home or bungalow?

We advertise all of our available homes on our Find A Home page, simply visit this page for more information.

Before you can place a bid on one of our homes, you must first have an active account with the relevant Choice Based Lettings Scheme. Almost all our homes are located in County Durham and therefore are allocated through the Durham Key Options scheme. Durham Key Options (DKO) is a partnership between Durham County Council and landlords across County Durham.

We have a small number of homes which are located outside Durham, these are all advertised through Tees Valley HomeFinder, Hartlepool HomeSearch and Darlington HomeSearch; They are similar to Durham Key Options but we do not process applications registered for these schemes. If you wish to register an application for homes advertised in this area, please apply directly.

Once your application is approved, you will then be able to bid on homes that meet your needs. You can access the application form directly by visiting the relevant Choice Based Lettings system.

How long will it take for my application to be processed?

We aim to start processing your application within 10 working days. If we require any further information after this point, we will contact you to ask for this. Once we have received all the required information we will notify you of our decision within 20 days, and if accepted we will activate your account. You can also check your application status online by logging into the DKO portal.

How can I get involved with Livin and help to shape services?

To find out more about the different ways you can get involved, please visit our getting involved section.

Can I apply to buy my home under Right to Buy?

Tenants who have been with Livin since before the transfer from Sedgefield Council in 2009 may have the “Preserved Right to Buy” their property. Full details of the scheme are available on the Government Right to Buy website. If you are thinking of applying, please contact us.

Can I apply to buy my home under Right to Acquire?

If you have been a tenant for 3 or more years you may have the right to buy your property under the Right to Acquire scheme. Full details of the scheme are available on the Government Right to Acquire website. If you are thinking of applying, please contact us.

More FAQ's

Building and Acquiring Sustainable Homes

Vision: Additional high quality, sustainable homes, which meet the needs and aspirations of our tenants, in places where they are proud to live

Building and Acquiring Sustainable Homes is our strategy map to delivering additional, high quality, sustainable homes, which meet the needs of our tenants, in the places they are proud to live.

Our strategy sets out three objectives and 10 key actions to deliver over the next three years. We will grow the development program to meet the sustainable, long term demand for affordable homes within our operating areas. We will build our new homes to be sustainable for the future. We will provide homes that meet our customers needs and aspirations.

Objective 23: Grow the development programme to meet the sustainable, long-term demand for affordable homes within our operating areas

To do this we will :

+ Increase the number of new build home completions so that we own and manage at least 9,000 homes by 2025

+ Meet the strategic priorities of Homes England to ensure we continue to receive grant funding for our future developments

+ Construct homes using Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) to understand how developments can be delivered more quickly and with less environmental impact

Objective 24: Provide new homes that are sustainable for the future, lowering energy use for our tenants and improving the thermal comfort of our homes

To do this we will :

+ Improve the efficiency of our new homes to improve thermal comfort, reduce energy costs for tenants and reduce carbon emissions

+ Install and evaluate low carbon heating technologies in our homes to understand how they can be successfully deployed at scale

+ Build our first prototype low carbon “Future Home” to be zero-carbon ready by 2025

Objective 25: Provide new homes that meet the needs of our tenants, including homes suitable for older people and/or people with disabilities

To do this we will :

+ Proactively utilise intelligence to understand the demand for affordable homes of current and prospective tenants and to increase the agility of decision making

+ Create our Design Code for house types that match the priorities of our customers' needs and expectations

+ Improve the customer experience of receiving new build homes to maximise satisfaction

New supply delivered VFM metric 2 (cumulative)

Total stock number

Number of new build homes developed and acquired (cumulative over 3 years)

Average SAP rating of land led homes completed

Average SAP rating of acquisitions completed

Percentage of new homes approved which are suitable for older persons and/or disabled people

Percentage of units secured against business plan targets over a three-year period

Find out more about Plan A in the sections below

Background

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Transforming Customer Experience and Digital Services

Seamless, reliable and convenient services that tenants can influence and trust to ensure their aspirations are met

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Planet A

Environmentally sustainable futures for generations to come with tenants thriving in low energy homes and greener places

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Supporting Sustainable Places

Beautiful, sustainable and thriving places that meet the aspirations of residents and produce a sense of pride and belonging

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Supporting Sustainable Tenancies

Happy, empowered tenants living in comfortable and manageable homes

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Providing Quality Sustainable Homes

Tenants living in warm, safe, high quality, sustainable homes in a place they are proud to live

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