Blackpool Coastal Housing believe you should have a choice when you rent a home from us. Homestop is our choice based lettings system that allows you to search for a property to suit your needs. It can also assist you in finding a council home or a housing association home.

Where can I find out which properties are available

We advertise available properties::

• Visiting the homestop website
• Visiting the Homestop Property Shop situated on Chepstow Road, Grange Park
• Looking at newsletters that are displayed in our local housing offices, South King Street or Customer First
• In the Blackpool Gazette property pages - fortnightly
• We can also add your details to our data base and send you a newsletter in the post

We also advertise vacancies on Grange Park for Manchester Methodist Housing Association (formerly Five Piers) and Muir Housing Group.

What if I need help searching for properties 

If you need extra help for searching for properties contact the homestop team who will be happy to help.

How will I know what properties are suitable

All adverts will say what letting criteria should be met to make sure the property is let appropriately. For example, it will say if there is a requirement for ground floor approval, minimum age limit or household size. The advert will also tell you how many bedrooms there are, how much the rent is and other useful information.

What is a bid

A bid is your way of expressing your interest in a particular property. You can only bid for properties when they are advertised. You only have to bid once for each property and there is no money involved when placing a bid.

You can make bids:

• On the Homestop website
• By email
• By telephone
• At the Homestop Property Shop
• At all Area Housing Offices
• By post, to the Homestop Property Shop

How long do I have to make a bid

The bidding cycle lasts for 1 week. Bidding begins on Wednesday mornings and ends at midnight the following Tuesday.

The time you place a bid during the bidding cycle, does not in any way affect who is offered a property, except in cases where the property is advertised as 'first come first served'.

What will happen to my bid

Once the cycle has closed we will select the successful applicant from the shortlist.  This will be based on:-    

• Whether you are eligible for the home.
• The priority band and how long you have been in that band.

However, we may not offer you a property if you owe a debt to the Housing Service, have a history of anti-social behaviour, or have not kept your Council property in a good condition. These checks can take a few days.

If you have made a number of bids and are successful for more than one property we will offer you your preference. Once you are made an offer we will not consider your bids for any other properties until you have decided whether or not to accept the property offered.

When will I know if I have been successful

If your bid has been successful we will contact you within 3 working days of the cycle closing date.  If you do not hear from us within this time then you have been unsuccessful.  Please continue to place bids on suitable properties.

How will I know what happened to the properties I bid for?

Details of all lettings are published on this website. See 'Homestop Bidding Results'.

This information lets you see how popular particular properties are. It also tells you the length of time you may have to wait for a similar one. This will help you make more realistic bids in the future.

What happens when I am offered a property

When we offer you a property, we will invite you to view it. If you decide to take it we will explain the tenancy conditions to you. You will have to sign a tenancy agreement accepting these conditions. They require you to pay your rent regularly, keep your home in good condition and not cause a nuisance or danger to other people.

Once you have signed for the tenancy we will cancel your Housing Registration.

You can refuse the property if it is not suitable. Simply tell the Homestop Team straight away. They will withdraw the offer and you can carry on bidding for other properties.

However, if you have been accepted as homeless, you may be restricted to where you can be housed and the number of offers you can have. If you are unsure ask a member of the Homestop Team or Housing Applications Team.

If the person in first place on the list refuses the property, we will offer it to the next person on the list and the same procedure is followed.