The housing register is a list of people who want to be housed by a social landlord in the Dover district and existing tenants who wish to transfer to another council or housing association property.
We receive a large number of enquiries each year from people looking to rent a home in the district and there are more than 2,000 households on our housing register at any time.
Only enough properties become available to be able to house around 400 of these households each year. As a result of this shortfall, applicants for housing, and in particular those identified as having low need, may have to consider alternative housing options such as privately renting.
Priority bands and waiting times
The housing register will differentiate between people who are in the same priority band according to their waiting time, taking into account the following:
- for new applicants, the date of your completed application
- for transferring tenants, the date you applied for a transfer and provided all the data required by us to make an assessment
- for existing applicants or tenants, the date you notified us of a significant change in your circumstances, that is, one which will improve your priority band. For changes that lower your priority band, the date of application applies.
In all cases, waiting time will only start to accrue once all the data required by us to make an assessment has been provided and the application registered.
The applications on our housing waiting list and the average waiting time is set out below, from 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025:
| Type/size | Number of lets | Shortest wait (days) | Longest wait (days) | Average wait (days) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sheltered accommodation | 26 | 199 | 1,980 | 527 |
| Studio general needs | 9 | 17 | 1,061 | 346 |
| 1-bed general needs | 72 | 22 | 4,437 | 527 |
| 1-bed bungalow | 9 | 12 | 2,932 | 653 |
| 2-bed flat or maisonette | 101 | 43 | 2,557 | 462 |
| 2-bed bungalow | 12 | 64 | 1,084 | 431 |
| 2-bed house | 62 | 109 | 1,247 | 453 |
| 3-bed flat or maisonette | 6 | 456 | 1,147 | 786 |
| 3-bed house | 54 | 163 | 3,109 | 908 |
| 4-bed house | 4 | 311 | 896 | 651 |
Other options
There are other options for rehousing such as renting accommodation in the private sector. We have a team of housing options officers who can provide advice and information about how to access other types of housing.
- email: housing@dover.gov.uk (opens in new tab)
- Go to the Kent Homechoice website to find other options available (opens in new tab)
Keep Me Posted
Sign up for email updates on council services.
Keep Me Posted