How can this be??

hanny83_2 · 6 November 2008 at 3:51PM

I'm not saying you are sitting on your bum claiming income support, I was referring to some single mothers that do, not yourself. Don't get me wrong, I agree that she does seem to get alot of help, I'm 25, single and earn £23k a year and don't get any help in regards to council tax/tax credits etc but luckily I don't need the help anyway. All I am saying is that what she has, she has earned, and it is her business how much money she has.

No, it is not fair, but I would guess she has to fork out a pretty penny in child care. I guess it is up to her personally whether she accepts this help or not and she has decided to. The Child Tax Credit money, fair enough, the Child Benefit money, fair enough and the Concil Tax money, fair enough but the Housing Allowance does seem very steep.

xmaslolly76 · 6 November 2008 at 4:04PM

Im not sure how they work it all to be honest i earn 17.5k a year working full time i have 2 dependants and recieve £230 tax credits pw but pay £190 a week in childcare. With these figures they told me i was entitled to £52.86 pw in housing allowance. Im based in dudley and have been advised that amounts of allowance differ from area to area due to the difference in costs of living and rents. Maybe she is entitled to so much housing allowance because of where she lives is the area an expensive rental area ?

BB78 · 6 November 2008 at 4:06PM

hanny83 wrote: »

I'm not saying you are sitting on your bum claiming income support, I was referring to some single mothers that do, not yourself.

Sorry! Cage has been rattled today!

I don't like claiming benefits and I know there are plenty out there claiming so they can sit on their backsides all day but it really knarks me at times that I get lumped in with them!

hanny83 wrote: »

the Housing Allowance does seem very steep.

This is exactly what I don't get!! I scrimped & saved every penny to get out of a bad housing situation and buy my shoebox, if I privately rented it would be about £600 a month & my whole rent would be met, my mortgage is £500 a month - £100 a month less than private rent for an equivilent property so in effect I am saving them £100, but because I have a mortgage the help I get for housing costs is only £400 a month not £600 a month if I was renting! :mad:

xmaslolly76 · 6 November 2008 at 4:13PM

BB78 you are right it is very unfair when you have worked so hard to get what you have around you. unfortunately this country seems intent on kicking the hard working people in teeth at every opportunity and letting the bums drain the system dry. I'm sorry to say i would never buy a house now i am on my own as i know if i was ever made redundant i would not be able to keep the roof over my childrens head at least renting i can get it paid if worst comes to worst. Thankfully this isn't likely happen my company is booming at the minute but you never know

BB78 · 6 November 2008 at 4:14PM

xmaslolly76 wrote: »

Im not sure how they work it all to be honest i earn 17.5k a year working full time i have 2 dependants and recieve £230 tax credits pw but pay £190 a week in childcare. With these figures they told me i was entitled to £52.86 pw in housing allowance. Im based in dudley and have been advised that amounts of allowance differ from area to area due to the difference in costs of living and rents. Maybe she is entitled to so much housing allowance because of where she lives is the area an expensive rental area ?

She lives in a cheaper rental area than me but possibly more expensive then you, she's paying £595pm for a 2 bed house where as down here its more like £750pm.
You earn £17.5k a year & have 2 kids & you can only get £52.86 pw, she's earning £12.5k a year more than you (ok her tax credits are less) but she'll get £135pw in housing allowance!! Earns more money, has less children... seem fair to you??

hanny83_2 · 6 November 2008 at 4:15PM

Yes, I totally understand where you are coming from. I'm not sure whether this link will be of any help to you.
http://www.jobcentreplus.gov.uk/JCP/Partners/Allowancesandbenefits/Dev_010056.xml.html

I think the problem is that most of the time, people have no idea what they are entitled to claim and when you're stressed and bogged down it can be too hard to do the research yourself/understand the legal jargon.

BB78 · 6 November 2008 at 4:26PM

Thanks for the link, this is the help with mortgage costs I am getting but it doesn't cover my monthly payment in full, where as if I was renting I'd be entitled to more in Housing Allowance & be better off but I'm not willing to give up what I worked hard for & can't be doing with the stress of another move!!
It took me a long time to find out what I was entitled to, I really didn't need the added stress of struggling financially in the first few months because the benefits agency aren't forth coming with info!
And the unfairness of the system has really hacked me off today!!

lil_lady_2 · 6 November 2008 at 6:18PM

i dont see how your friend gets so much as for are family income is abit above 18,000 and we are not entitled to any thing but ctc and CB ... i see your point but she is a single mum so maybe thats why ... my mum never got all this for me ( notthing but CB) and her, and she worked full time had to pay every thing in full and i sufferd due to it ( no new uniforms and that) . but still 30 k is alot that does confuse me

BB78 · 6 November 2008 at 6:29PM

lil_lady wrote: »

my mum never got all this for me ( notthing but CB) and her, and she worked full time had to pay every thing in full and i sufferd due to it ( no new uniforms and that) . but still 30 k is alot that does confuse me

Same here, my Mum only got CB, Dad refused to pay maintainence (& got away with it!!) Mum had to sell the car & had to work 2 jobs & me & my sister missed out because of it!!
Forget the extra in benefits I'd love to have £30k a year coming in!!

OrkneyStar · 6 November 2008 at 7:49PM

BB78 wrote: »

My friend is a single parent, rents privately and works full time, she has just been given a very nice pay rise taking her to £30k a year plus bonus (which was £4K in April)!! I was concerned this would have a knock on effect on her benefits but it works out she'll still get £550 a month in housing allowance, £60 a month council tax benefit (on top of the 25% discount) plus about £80 a month child benefit, £40 child tax credit & a take home wage of £1850 a month!!

When I was working full time I was earning no where near £30k and wasn't entitled to any help. I'm single, bought a shoe box of a 1 bedroom flat before I got ill & now can't work because of disability, I'm trying to pay a mortgage & all the other associated bills plus a home improvement loan and all the usual living expenses (like food) on benefits and even with all the money saving tips & cost cutting I'm still a good £300 a month short, every month! :eek:

Can it really be that I would be better off having a baby, working full time on a very nice salary and privately renting a place much bigger than mine??!! :mad: :mad:

Let her deal with her finances and you deal with yours! You don't know every aspect of her life so just leave it at that. If she is correct then so be it, if not then it will be discovered eventually! I expect she probably has childcare costs which her tax credits don't even make a dent in- be appreciative of what you do get instead of saying 'pah, she gets more than me'!

BB78 wrote: »

This is exactly what I don't get!! I scrimped & saved every penny to get out of a bad housing situation and buy my shoebox, if I privately rented it would be about £600 a month & my whole rent would be met, my mortgage is £500 a month - £100 a month less than private rent for an equivilent property so in effect I am saving them £100, but because I have a mortgage the help I get for housing costs is only £400 a month not £600 a month if I was renting! :mad:

Ultimately you will own your house, she will not if she is renting.

How can this be??

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