The provision of affordable housing is becoming a key element in delivering on government policy. As schemes become available it is vital that the applications be dealt with efficiently and transparently. Using the DORAS Portal applicants provide all of their information and backup documentation online and the council staff can quickly and transparently process all applications in line with the scheme of priority.

Allocating houses on a first come first served basis (once the qualifying criteria have been met) has become an important part of the Councils’ schemes of priority. Realistically the only way to do this transparently is through an online process. Applications are time stamped at the time they are submitted. This allows the council to show with certainty that the process has been fair. 

The use of post for receiving applications and dealing with queries is eliminated. All correspondence is dealt with online and through the portal. All interactions between the applicant and the council are logged and can be audited afterwards. This provides full transparency and fairness.

The introduction of the Doras Portal for Affordable Housing applications greatly speeds up the process. It has been the experience of local authorities using the portal that 15% of applications are received in the first 15 minutes and between 45% and 50% in the first day. In general you can expect to have the final list of successful applicants within three weeks of the opening of applications.