THOUSANDS of York families desperately waiting for council homes could be given relief under radical new plans.

Latest figures have shown that 2,104 people - of whom many were members of families - were currently waiting to be given homes.

Coun Mark Hill, a member of a board which looks at York's housing needs, said York had a "serious housing problem", with only 8,000 council properties in total. Many of them were unsuitable for families, and there was a turnover of only 100 a month.

Some properties were even standing empty while suitable new tenants were found for them.

He said: "It's a very difficult situation at the moment - we still have a very serious housing problem."

Coun Hill said the council's current housing system was run on a points system, with officers ranking people in order of their needs - placing the most vulnerable at the top of the list.

But under new plans, tenants would be given more choice on where they wanted to live, by bidding for properties, either at an estate agents or online.

They would be placed into "bands", according to their specific needs, and would be able to "shop" for houses within their needs group.

Members of City of York Council's cross-party housing scrutiny board, who have come up with the scheme, have said it would bring badly-needed relief to York's severely overstretched housing waiting list, by getting tenants into new properties faster.

A report from the board said giving tenants more choice would also reduce the amount of time properties were empty.

Coun Hill said: "York has been slower than other local authorities which are moving this way.

"Tenants deserve this sort of facility now - councillors want to see as much choice as possible."

The council's scrutiny management committee is being asked to give the nod to the scheme at a meeting next Tuesday. If approved, the plans will be discussed by the ruling executive, and could then be adopted as council policy.

Coun Sue Sunderland, executive member for housing, said the report was an "important" piece of work, and would be considered by the executive.

As part of the scheme, councillors also want the discount for council tenants buying their homes under the "Right to buy" scheme - introduced by the Tories in the 1980s - reduced by a third.

This would mean tenants would only be able to borrow £16,000 to buy their homes, as opposed to the £24,000 they are currently allowed.

Board members said this would help reduce the number of people waiting on the housing list, by helping the council keep more of its properties for new tenants.

Updated: 10:06 Monday, March 21, 2005