Sheffield Property Shop

Who can apply for properties through the Sheffield Property Shop?

You must have been accepted onto AnyBorough’s Housing Register to be able to apply for either rented or low cost home ownership properties through AnyBorough HomeChoice. Anyone aged 16 years or over may apply to join the Housing Register.

How do I apply to join the Housing Register?

You will need to complete the online application form. Further information on how to do this can be found here.

What other documents do I need to provide?

Along with your application form, applicants are required to provide 2 forms of identification (ID) and a reference when applying to join the Housing Register. For further information on providing ID and a reference, please see the guidance here. In short, you will need to provide:

• One form of ‘primary’ ID for the applicant (and joint applicant). If this does not include a photograph, for example a birth certificate, we will also require a passport style photograph.
• Proof of address for the applicant (and joint applicant).
• Proof of child benefit for all children aged 16 or under who are named on the application. This should be your most recent child benefit award letter.
• A reference from a suitable person using the Sheffield City Council reference template. This will usually be your current or most recent landlord. 

ID and references must be provided within 28 days of submitting your application online. You should take these to your local First Point or to Howden House. If we do not receive these, your application will be cancelled and you will need to re-apply. If you have any issues with providing the above, please contact us on 0114 205 3333 or 293 0000.

Before you are offered a property you will need to provide additional documents to support your application. We will tell you what documents to provide and when to provide them. All documents provided must be originals, up to date and valid.

What happens if I do not provide the required documents?

ID and references must be provided within 28 days of submitting your application online. You should take these to your local First Point or to Howden House. If we do not receive these, your application will be cancelled and you will need to re-apply. If you have any issues with providing the above, please contact us on 0114 205 3333 or 293 0000.

How do I know if I have been accepted onto the Housing Register?

You will receive a letter confirming that you have been accepted onto the Housing Register. This will tell you the band you have been placed within and your effective date.

Can you refuse to accept me onto the Housing Register?

There are some people who are not eligible to be included on the Housing Register. These are: 

• Certain people who are subject to Immigration Control under the 1996 Asylum and Immigration Act.
• Certain people from abroad who are not subject to immigration control but who are not habitually resident in the UK, the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man or the Republic of Ireland.
• People (including members of their household) who have been guilty of unacceptable behaviour that makes them unsuitable to be a tenant.

Further information on who is eligible to join the Housing Register can be found here.

What are the priority bands?

Your application will be assessed according to your level of housing need and placed into a band, within each band applications are placed in date order. If you are awarded a priority for rehousing due to an urgent or immediate need to move, you will be advised as such by your priority awarding officer. Further information on how we prioritise applications can be found here.

What do I do if my circumstances change?

It is very important that you tell us of any changes in your circumstances so that we can amend your application. We will tell you if this results in your application moving to a different band. Depending on the change you have made, you may be required to resubmit your identification. We will inform you if this is necessary.

How often are properties advertised?

New properties are advertised each week on a Thursday at 12:01AM. Bids can be made up until the following Tuesday at 11:59PM. The date and time of your bid is not a factor in whether you are offered the property unless you are bidding on a ‘First Come First Served’ property, therefore it is not necessary to ensure you bid as early as possible. No properties are advertised on a Wednesday.

Your real time bid position is shown on the website and will change depending on other bids we receive for the same property. For further information on how we allocate properties, please see the guidance.

What information will the property adverts contain?

The adverts will tell you the landlord, location, size, rent and other features of the property. Where available a photograph of the property will be provided and you will be able to access information about the local area and facilities. The advert will also tell you if there are any special requirements that the applicant must meet, such as age requirements. It also tells you the number of bedrooms that applicants applying for the property need to be entitled to. If your bedroom entitlement is different to this you will not be able to bid for that property. 

How do I apply for a property?

The easiest and quickest way to place a bid is to log in to your account online. You will be able to see all the properties you are eligible to bid for and given an indication of your current bid position for that property. For further information on placing bids or alternative methods to place your bid, please see the guidance.

Will I know how many other people are interested in the same property?

Yes, when you bid for a property you will be shown where you are in the queue at that moment in time. This is likely to change frequently due to other people bidding for the same property. Using this information you may decide to withdraw your bid for one property and bid for a different property for which you are higher placed in the queue. You can do this at any time before the closing date.

If I am offered a property, will I be able to view it before making up my mind?

Yes. You will be given an opportunity to view the property and decide whether you would like to accept it. Further information on accepting/refusing offers can be found here.

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