Frequently asked questions

What is Find My Home and how does it work?

Find My Home is Queens Cross Housing Association’s online housing information, advice and lettings service. It is a choice-based lettings system which allows applicants to choose which properties they want to apply for.

If you are looking to apply for a home with Queens Cross Housing Association you should complete an application form. The form will ask you to provide details about your household and your housing circumstances. We can then use this information to determine your housing needs and we will award a priority band to reflect this. You can complete an application by selecting the "Register Now" button above.

When we have an available property, we will place an advert on Findmyhome.org.uk. The advert will run for one week, from Wednesday at 12pm to the following Wednesday at 12pm. Registered applicants who are interested in the property and meet the criteria which is explained in the advert, can place a bid. This means that they are noting their interest in that property. You can view the properties we are advertising by selecting the "Property Search" option above.

When the advert ends, we receive a list of everyone who has bid for the property, sorted in order of their housing priority and we will offer the property to the first suitable applicant on the list.

When do you advertise your properties?

When we have an available property, we will place an advert on findmyhome.org.uk. The advert will usually run for one week, from Wednesday at 12pm to the following Wednesday at 12pm.

We may advertise properties for longer over holiday periods, such as Easter or Christmas. Property adverts will display the advert closing date so that applicants know the date by which they need to place a bid if they are interested in the property.

The advert will detail the property address, location, property type and size, details of the property features and will include photographs and other important information. The advert will also confirm the closing date for bids. It is important that applicants place their bid before the closing date as we cannot accept any bids after the advert has ended. There is no limit to the number of properties you can bid for each week.

You can view the properties we are advertising by selecting the "Property Search" option above.

What properties can I bid for?

We will set criteria on our property adverts which will determine who can bid for the property. We do this to make sure that we make the best use of the properties we have available. For example, if we are advertising a property which has lots of stairs leading to it, we will set up the advert so that only people who can manage stairs can bid for it, or if we are advertising a property that has been adapted for wheelchair users, we will set up the advert so that wheelchair users are considered first.

Our adverts will clearly state the criteria we have set and you can bid for any properties that meet your needs and that you meet the criteria for.

Applicants will be classified as either a Home Mover or a Home Seeker:

• Home Movers are tenants of Queens Cross Housing Association who are looking to move to another property

• Home Seekers are applicants who do not currently live in a Queens Cross Housing Association property but would like to apply for a home with us

When we advertise each property, we will say whether it is for Home Movers, Home Seekers or both categories. We do this so that we can make sure that different applicant types get a fair chance of being made an offer.

Do I have to accept a property I have bid for if I am offered it?

If you bid for a property and are then offered it, you are not obliged to accept it, however, we hope that by seeing all of the property details in the advert, you will be able to make an informed choice about what properties to bid for and therefore should be confident that you would accept the property if you were offered it.

Priority awards will be reviewed regularly and may be reduced if you refuse offers of suitable housing that meet your needs. Please read property advert details carefully and only bid for properties that you are likely to accept if offered, as refusing offers may result in your priority band being downgraded. Applicants with a platinum priority band will normally be made one offer of a suitable property before their band is changed. Applicants with gold or silver priority will normally be made two offers of a property that meets their needs before their band is downgraded.

How do I know if my bid has been successful?

Properties are offered to the bidder with the highest priority band who would make the best use of the property features. If more than one applicant has the same priority band, the length of time they have had their priority for determines their position on the shortlist.

When you place a bid, you will see your current position on the shortlist. Your position may change as more bids may be added before the advert ends. Your final position on the bid list will not be known until the advert has ended.

You can log in to your account to view your previous bids and the status of those bids. If the bid has a status of “bid shortlisted” it means that we are considering you for the property and we will contact you. If the status is “bid lost” it means that the property has been offered to another applicant.

What if I don’t place any bids?

You can only be offered a property that you have placed a bid for. If you don’t place any bids, you will remain registered with us but will not be offered a property.

Applicants who have been awarded a platinum priority band, in recognition of their urgent need for rehousing, may have their band downgraded if they do not bid for properties that would meet their needs.

We will contact applicants who have not logged into the system or placed a bid within the last year to check that they still wish to remain registered with us.

What priority bands are available and what is the criteria for each band?

There are four priority bands - Platinum, Gold, Silver and Bronze. These priority bands may be awarded in the following situations:

Priority Band
Priority Band	Priority Band
Platinum	• Current Queens Cross Housing Association tenants who need to move urgently for their own safety (i.e. when they are experiencing domestic abuse, hate crime or serious harassment). Supporting evidence from Police Scotland or another recognised agency would be required before this band would be awarded. • Applicants who have an exceptional housing need which is so unusual that it is not covered by our allocation policy • Applicants in receipt of our Wellbeing services (Housing First for Young People, Wellbeing for Good Mental Health, Wellbeing for people age 60+) where it has been recognised that they would benefit from moving due to their specific support needs • Current Queens Cross Housing Association tenants who require to be rehoused due to regeneration activity (i.e. their home is being demolished)
Gold	• Applicants who are homeless and have been referred to us by Glasgow City Council • Applicants who are leaving care and have been referred to us by the Social Work department • Applicants with complex medical conditions or disabilities where their property does not meet their needs • Social landlord tenants who are under-occupying their property by two or more bedrooms and want to downsize • Applicants who are overcrowded by two or more bedrooms • Applicants whose property has been assessed as being Below a Tolerable Standard by a Local Authority
Silver	• Current Queens Cross Housing Association tenants who have experienced a relationship breakdown • Applicants leaving active service with the Armed Forces • Applicants who live in unsuitable housing due to a medical condition/disability but are not housebound and their life is not at risk due to their current housing • Social landlord tenants who are under-occupying their property by one bedroom and want to downsize • Applicants who are overcrowded by one bedroom • Applicants who need to move to access medical treatment, for employment purposes, due to financial hardship or to be near relatives for support • Private rented tenants or homeowners who are at risk of losing their home • Private rented tenants whose property is in a poor condition • Applicants who are experiencing relationship strain in their household • Vulnerable tenants who are experiencing serious and persistent anti-social behaviour and who have reported the issue to the relevant parties • Applicants who are sofa-surfing or living in temporary accommodation
Bronze	• Applicants who are assessed with none of the above housing needs but consider that they are unsuitably housed

Please note that the above is a summary of our priority bands. More information about the criteria for each band can be found in our Allocation Policy.

Priority awards will be reviewed regularly and may be reduced if you refuse offers of suitable housing that meet your needs.

How do I update my application details if my circumstances change?

You can view your application by selecting "Log in to view or change my application" above and entering your username and password. You can also make changes to your application if your circumstances change.

Small changes, like updating a phone number, can be made quickly and easily. Larger changes, like adding a household member or changing an address, will mean that you need to review the whole application form. This is so that we can make sure your information is up-to-date and that your priority band reflects your current situation.

Once you have made the necessary changes, we will review your application again to make sure we have all the information we need.

Any more questions?

If you have a question that has not been answered here, please get in touch with us. You can call us on 0808 143 2002 or email us at [email protected]

How do I manage my application and my bids?

Check out our handy guide which tells you everything you need to know about managing your account on Find My Home.