Forced to move home due to disability - can partner get assistance??

Fire_Fox

Longer term do you both really need to remain in London?

Jowo_2

rockinrob wrote: »

He might be able to claim LHA for help with his rent and CTB for his council tax as long as he has no savings above £6000

Speak to the Local Authority in his area I believe the allowances are quite high in London due to the Broad Market Rental Allowance

At least seek advice outside of this forum as there are a lot of crolls(sic) on here who love to vent and judge

The LHA rates for London are higher than the rest of the country but it will be the boyfriends income that is the main factor in whether he is eligible for it and not the fact that he chose to live in ludicrously expensive accommodation on his low salary.

I'm surprised the Housing Association gave him a sole tenancy knowing that 80% of his net income would be needed to pay the rent, leaving him at high risk of arrears. The simplest of checks should have uncovered that he would struggle with it.

I wouldn't think someone earning 17k would get much in the way of LHA. His main problem is that he is living in a property where he really needs to have been earning at least 25k to even barely afford it but as he pays out over 3k per year to support his children, he realistically needs around 28k as a salary to support his lifestyle choice.

rockinrob

Jowo wrote: »

The LHA rates for London are higher than the rest of the country but it will be the boyfriends income that is the main factor in whether he is eligible for it and not the fact that he chose to live in ludicrously expensive accommodation on his low salary.

I'm surprised the Housing Association gave him a sole tenancy knowing that 80% of his net income would be needed to pay the rent, leaving him at high risk of arrears. The simplest of checks should have uncovered that he would struggle with it.

I wouldn't think someone earning 17k would get much in the way of LHA. His main problem is that he is living in a property where he really needs to have been earning at least 25k to even barely afford it but as he pays out over 3k per year to support his children, he realistically needs around 28k as a salary to support his lifestyle choice.

If he has a one bedroom self-contained flat in East London with a salary of 17,000pa He would be entitled to a rent allowance of @ £310-£550 per month from his LA Not to be sniffed at It could be more dependant on who his LA is.
Notwithstanding this The flat does appear to be beyond his means and an alternative might need to be sought in the long run -sorry.

Sadly no help with the council tax apart from the SPD

He ought to apply anyway for the LHA

Robbie x

Jowo_2

rockinrob wrote: »

If he has a one bedroom self-contained flat in East London with a salary of 17,000pa He would be entitled to a rent allowance of @ £310-£550 per month from his LA Not to be sniffed at It could be more dependant on who his LA is.
Notwithstanding this The flat does appear to be beyond his means and an alternative might need to be sought in the long run -sorry.

Fair enough. I stand corrected and apologise. When I ran the scenario through Entitledto to model it the first time, it came back with zero so I must have completed it poorly.

I-Owe-You

Hello again,

Thank you for your advise.

Its easy to say lets up sticks and move out of London, we both work within a 20 minute walk, which my partner provides assistance with me getting to due to my mobility.

We have always lived in London, as do all of our friends and family. Why should we be penalised into moving further out when we both work full time and pay our way?

I will be resentful of those who live in social housing on state benefits as a way of life as I have the decency to still be in employment despite my disability yet are seemingly no better off for it. A friend of mine who hasn't worked since leaving school who is a single parent of 3 children has recently been offered a 3 bedroom new build for a fraction of the price in rent that we were (or my partner still is) currently paying for a one bedroom. She wasn't over crowded in her previous property - and whilst I dont have any bad feelings for my friend this country is just in shambles...

We rented the 2nd floor flat together prior to my recent diagnosis (if we had know of course we wouldnt have moved in!), and with both our incomes considered it was plusable to pay the astronomical rent (it is mostly private ownership building - with just a few supposedly "affordable" houses, one which we rented)

As my partner is now living as a single person (although we are still together) I wondered if he qualified for assistance. Due to the accumilation of much stuff and the fact my partner is in his mid-30s it would not be fair to expect him to move into a bed sit/flat share because of me - not things dreams are mad of when we have both worked since we are 16 ... we would seemingly be better off unemployed!?!

As I said moving out of London isnt an option - my partner has to escort me to and from work due to my mobility problems - i struggle greatly on public transport, because my disability has no instant visual aid a seat is not always offered to me. I also have many regular appointments with various specialists and doctors at my local hospital, which I have built up a great rapport with staff with. I do not want to have to switch hospitals.

We just wanted to know whenever my partner could get any temp financial assistance until we can find another appropriate ground floor property in the near future - it wouldn't be a long term situation as of course we want to live together as a couple again.

Thank you for your input and comments. I will look on the entitled to website deffinately. Thanks again.

Indie_Kid

I-Owe-You wrote: »

Hello again,

Thank you for your advise.

Its easy to say lets up sticks and move out of London, we both work within a 20 minute walk, which my partner provides assistance with me getting to due to my mobility.

As I said moving out of London isnt an option - my partner has to escort me to and from work due to my mobility problems - i struggle greatly on public transport, because my disability has no instant visual aid a seat is not always offered to me. I also have many regular appointments with various specialists and doctors at my local hospital, which I have built up a great rapport with staff with. I do not want to have to switch hospitals.

You can get assistance to work via access to work -> http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/DisabledPeople/Employmentsupport/WorkSchemesAndProgrammes/DG_4000347

Jomo

Well many people would love to live so near to their place of work but cannot simply afford to, Surely where ever you live your boyfriend will be able to help you?

Jowo_2

Will your parents permit your boyfriend to move into your parents house as a temporary measure until you can find a more suitable property?

As your bf is the sole tenant on the tenancy agreement, I'm still baffled that they took your income into account when granting him it as even with the landlords knowledge and permission of your occupation, you had no security of tenure.

You had a status akin to being a guest and no obligation to pay any rent, hence the ease in which you could move out and inadvertantly expose him to the full rent which swallows most of his income. A landlord should have known the risk of giving a tenancy to a person whose income doesn't allow them to comfortably pay the rent.

qwertyuiop12345

Jowo wrote: »

£860 is still a high rent for a 1 bed flat in London and he should look to find cheaper accommodation.

In many parts of London it is actually quite low. I was paying about that for a tiny one bedroom near Finsbury Park back in 2004.

However he could probably save money by moving to a flat share, but this might not be possible if his children ever visit or if this couple hope to soon be back living together.

OP, you have my sympathy, it sounds like a rubbish situation!

qwertyuiop12345

I-Owe-You wrote: »

Thanks Karenx - sometimes I wonder if I am better off working. I am sick of paying £7 monthly for my perscription which I need - just because I work!

If you have frequent prescriptions it might be cheaper to get a prescription prepayment card. You can pay for this by direct debit and it covers as many prescriptions as you need in the year for a set fee.