Woman finds home in Walsall after being made 'homeless' when landlord sold house she had lived in for years

Zara Randall was left ‘homeless’ when her previous landlord decided to sell the Willenhall property she had lived in for seven years up until 2021, forcing her to move back in with her mother.

But the 40-year-old council worker eventually found her ‘perfect’ new home in a social housing development on Canalside Close.

The properties were built by LoCal Homes in Aldridge using modern methods of construction.

These houses are built in factory-controlled conditions within a week and then assembled onsite in two weeks, ready for trades to come in.

Bosses said this could see super-insulated, cheaper to heat homes built at a faster pace and with reduced costs in future social and affordable housing schemes.

West Midlands Mayor Richard Parker has pledged to create 20,000 new social homes over the next decade to help alleviate the housing crisis in the region.

Earlier this month, the Homes for the West Midlands Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) was launched which will see the combined authority work with five housing associations – Bromford, Citizen Housing, GreenSquareAccord, Midland Heart, and Walsall Housing Group – to build new homes.

Zara said: “The landlord decided to sell the property and because of how quickly she wanted to get it up for sale, I ended up moving back in with my mom.

“It was a shock having to empty and declutter a three-bedroom house. It was painful and had to do it over a number of weeks.

“I did have a few sleepless nights. I’ve got two brothers who live at home with mom and was thinking ‘where am I going to go?’

“That panic comes in and you think, trying to plan things in your head about what’s going to happen to your stuff.

“I didn’t think I was classed as homeless but in terms of the law you are, so I applied and was contacted by Walsall Council to say there were properties available.

“I came and had a look and spoke to someone from GreenSquareAccord and it was like, instant. It is brand new, haven’t got to do anything and it’s perfect so I took it.

“I got my keys in June and moved in a month later once everything was done. It’s great, it’s quiet, I’ve got my own space and I’m happy.

“It’s warmer, I don’t have to put my heating on as much. It’s cosy and my bills are not extortionate and everything seems to be at the right price considering the cost of living crisis. It’s cheaper than running the house.”

Mr Parker said: “This partnership is about working together to deliver more efficiently and more effectively more social homes and also looking at the ways we can use modern methods of construction to build high quality homes more quickly so we can get more people housed in a way that will improve everyone’s lives.

"I think they are a great way of delivering homes more quickly, a great way of building a volume through winter months and getting them deployed more quickly. I’m a big fan of this method.

“I want to get the maximum output from every house builder and every housing association and that includes getting the true benefits of modern and traditional methods.”