JSA (IB) refused - Rental income too much, yet no money to live on! Advice welcomed.

KoalaElf

cw18 wrote: »

As you have 'employment income' (as a self-employed landlord) I have to say I'm not surprised you can't get JSA -- I always understood that to be for someone who's completely out of work and looking for a job.

@ cw18
The self-employed are eligible for JSA(IB)if they are not making enough to live on. However I am not classed as self-employed by the DWP - I think because It is my primary residence. Although I believe if I operated as a B&B I would be eligible, which doesn't seem fair.

I bought this house as a business interest if you like: I invested money and hoped to make a small profit which would help me 'buy' the rest of the property back from the mortgage lender eventually. I would have bought a 1bed flat if I knew this was the situation I'd end up in.

Income support is a nono it would seem.

KoalaElf

MattLFC wrote: »

Id go with that; JSA for someone is technically classed as working, is never going to happen. Lol.

@MattLFC
They don't class me as working. I am not employed by someone. Nor do they class me as self-employed. However, if they did class me as self employed [as I would If I was living in a different property or operated as a B&B], then I would still qualify for JSA (Income Based) since I not make no profit at the moment!

KoalaElf

chriiiiiiiis wrote: »

What possessed you to buy a house that you couldn't afford if you were at uni with a part time job?

Did you think that your degree was going to give you all the money in the world immediately after graduating?

@chriiiiiiiis
I could afford it at the time. I bought with a 40% deposit and I was making a tidy profit, which with the help of a part time job enabled me to put away £580 p/m which is how much I need to pay into a repayment vehicle for my mortgage [it is interest only which was a sensible decision since I can't currently afford a repayment mortgage!)

No I didn't expect my degree to give me all the money in the world, I was on a Fine Art course, not notorious for its direct entry to highly profitable employment.

However, I also didn't expect my mortgage interest to shoot up by the amount it did [I had calculated a certain increase, which was inline with the amount of rent I could charge in the area - my projections were wrong unfortunately.

I also expected to be able to get at least something that pays minimum wage when I left university, which despite my best efforts - has not materialised. (I never had problems getting work before)

briona

Hi KoalaElf

Apologies for the "his" bit – I'm not sure why I assumed you were male!

Back to jobs, have you applied for admin-/reception-style jobs in photography or design studios? I know it's not *directly* related to what you want to do, but having an understanding of, and interest in, the subject gives you the edge over applicants without a related background. A friend of mine who was a Fine Art graduate got a job in a design studio, mainly as a receptionist, but she helped out with mounting work for presentations.

Have you checked out the selling your photography threads on the Up Your Income board? There are basically two options – micro stock (like istockphoto) where you get a few pence per image but are more likely to sell images, and macro stock (like British Images or Photographers Direct) where you sell less but get a far more generous and fair price for your work. More info on the link below.

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=576153

With regards to getting more work cat-sitting, is there a vet's local to you or a PDSA charity shop where you could advertise? Lots of people would prefer to have someone specific looking after their cat rather than putting it into a... ummm... well whatever the equivalent of a kennel is (!) when they go away on holiday.

I'll see if I can come up with any other ideas...

Briona

beccam

I have no real advice but just wanted to offer support, its a crap time to be trying to find a job...some seem to think it is easy to get employment when they are clearly not in a position of unemployment at this time!!
My OH was made redundant recently and has been unable to find any job, shelf stacking, cleaning..anything!! However he got a P/T job doing caretaking at my familys church, only 15hrs a week at low pay but better than a kick in the teeth!! He's also been getting some little odd jobs doing loft insulation for friends of friends, this seems to be more popular at the mo as people trying to cut heating bills in the cold and although he gets paid alot less than 'professional' people he's still earning good money from doing it and if he could get one of these a week it would be a great help. Is there anything you have gained experience in from doing up you own property that you could do for others? Try doing some photos for friends and posting them on facebook/bebo etc, I know one girl who is doing this at the minute and is getting great feedback, she's doing alot of outdoors and natural shots for families, engagements and weddings...so long as you're undercutting others you will eventually get some work.
Good luck with it, I'd ask for another review of your case for JSA..you are actively seeking employment and not actually 'earning' as such, very complicated though.

p1an0player

It must be possible to get some kind of minimum wage job, in a restaurant / shop / office. Have you visited such places in person? It's worth £200 a week full time, so even if you have to travel to a different town it could be worth it. Maybe you can work in a different town and stay with friends / youth hostel for a couple of nights per week to reduce travelling time.

Also if you work full time you'll be spending less and possibly getting free food in places like McDonalds.

Good luck

beccam

p1an0player wrote: »

It must be possible to get some kind of minimum wage job, in a restaurant / shop / office. Have you visited such places in person? It's worth £200 a week full time, so even if you have to travel to a different town it could be worth it. Maybe you can work in a different town and stay with friends / youth hostel for a couple of nights per week to reduce travelling time.

Also if you work full time you'll be spending less and possibly getting free food in places like McDonalds.

Good luck

have you tried?? McD's etc in our area don't even advertise as they employ directly from overseas....McD's is Indian, KFC is polish etc. A whole new food court just opened in our local shopping centre and not one job was advertised, when OH enquired at job centre and shopping centre he was told there were no vacancies and Job centre said they'd had no notice of any jobs there.

EdInvestor

KoalaElf wrote: »

I am on a fixed rate. It seemed more sensible to do that since at the time money was ok - interests rates were predicted to keep rising, and I try to keep everything on a fixed amount to keep my rents steady and covering everything. And my interest rate is now on a Buy to Let [which is horrid again since I don't class as self employed by some peoples standards!] despite it being my primary residence, which means my interest rate is at 6.69%

It would appear you have lodgers (rather than tenants) as you also live in the property. I assume you are aware that income from lodgers up to 4,250 a year is tax free (unlike letting income from a BTL)?

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/individuals/tmarent-a-room-scheme.shtml

You should not be on a BTL mortgage as you are not letting out a property, only rooms.

Who is your lender and what is the loan to value of your property?

bestpud

Deja vu?

Or is it just me?

real1314

KoalaElf wrote: »

@chriiiiiiiis
However, I also didn't expect my mortgage interest to shoot up by the amount it did

but you also say

"Originally Posted by KoalaElf
I am on a fixed rate."



This makes me think you're making this scenario up.

Also, if you had a 40% deposit and then a 60% mortgage, and it's your main residence, then I don't see how you got the mortgage. For one thing, you can't get a buy-to-let mortgage unless you've got your own separate property. So that's odd.
If it's not a b-t-l, then you'dve had to show income sufficient to pay the mortage.

Lots of very odd things in this OP. Perhaps you could clarify things a little:

How much is the mortgage for?
How much is the monthly payment?
How many lodgers and what do they each pay?
Do you have any other income?
Is it a b-t-l mortgage or a residential?