Bid for council housing
Check if you're eligible and apply to join the housing register.
If you're accepted onto the housing register, we’ll send you an email. The email will tell you:
- when you joined the housing register
- your priority date
- the type of home and number of bedrooms you can bid for
- your bidding number (also called your household ID)
You can bid for a home through our choice-based lettings service. This allows you to express an interest in a property that meets your housing needs.
We’ll give you all the necessary information about the property in our adverts on the Redbridge Homes website.
When to bid
You can bid for two properties a week.
Properties are advertised every week from Friday morning to Monday midnight.
You can bid at any time in the bidding period. It’s not run on a 'first come, first served' basis.
When you bid for a property, you’re telling us that you are expressing a serious interest in it.
What you need
You’ll need:
- your household ID
- your password
How to bid for a property
You need to bid online on the Redbridge Homes website.
You’ll only be able to see properties that you can bid for.
See guidance on how to use the Redbridge Homes bidding website (PDF 724KB)
After bidding closes
When bidding closes on Monday midnight the bids received for each property are ranked according to our allocation policy.
If you have bid for a property, you can log in to view your final bidding position on Redbridge Homes website
What happens next
We’ll contact you only if your bid is successful. We do not contact unsuccessful bidders.
We’ll send you a written offer by letter and arrange a viewing for the property.
Before we invite the successful bidder to view the property, we check to make sure:
- you have all the documentation
- your situation has not changed
- the property is still suitable for you
It's important to tell us about a change in your situation.
We may need more information from you. You’ll need to give this to us within 48 hours. If you do not give the information, you could lose the property.
Problems bidding for a property
The most common reasons you cannot bid for a property include:
- you’re trying to bid outside of the bidding period – you can only bid from Friday to Monday. You won’t be able to bid between Tuesday and Thursday
- you’re waiting to view a property after a successful bid
- you have told us your details have changed. We may have to stop your bidding account whilst we update your details
- you need to reset your password on Redbridge homes website
If you turn down the property
You must tell us why you’re refusing the property. Your position on the housing register will be affected.
If you live in temporary accommodation and turn down a suitable property:
- we may ask you to move out of your temporary accommodation
- you may lose your priority on the housing register
If you’re statutory homeless and thinking about refusing an offered property we recommend you get independent advice.
See Shelter's guidance on final offers of housing when homeless
