Housing Benefits

hanneil

Hi

I wonder if anyone can answer this question for me? My partner and me are having a child in July. He is unemployed. The waiting list for a council house is about 7-9 years. There are lot of houses for private rent on the market but most will not take people on benefits. My father owns a 2 bed second house that he rents out. He needs the rent to pay the mortgage is there any resone why i can't get housing benefits to rent the house off him.

Hannah

afc80

As long as you are not living with and paying rent to a close relative and the rental agreement is a commercial agreement then yes, you can claim Local Housing Allowance.

dmg24

afc80 wrote: »

As long as you are not living with and paying rent to a close relative and the rental agreement is a commercial agreement then yes, you can claim Local Housing Allowance.

Whilst it is certainly not impossible, it is far from as simple as you imply.

OP, I would speak to your LA before moving in. They will be able to give you a definitive answer as to whether your arrangement qualifies for LHA.

hanneil

Thanks for that fast reply. I was starting to think that there was no hope because friends have told me it would not be allowed. So as long as a contracted agreement is drawn up as he does will his private tenants it is possible.

Hannah

Jowo_2

Google 'contrived tenancy' to understand the rules around relatives claiming Local Housing Allowance. It is possible to rent a property from a relative and receive LHA but there are certain standards expected of it, such as it being a proper business relationship, hence having an AST in place and charging rent when the person is in employment, not just when they are eligible for LHA.

But consider also whether it is a good idea to mix family and business - do you want tenancy related issues to spoil a relationship? how happy would you be if your father had to evict you in the future?

hanneil

I agree but as I said it seems the shortest route for us to take. We can't afford a mortgage, the council houses are 7 year waiting and both parents do not want us to live with them because that would create a lot of tension.

Oldernotwiser

You could, of course, just rent a house in the private sector like most people do.

hanneil

But most private rentals will not take people on benefits.

Mr_Falling_Star

I know I am going to get flamed here but one possible solution to your problem is for your partner become employed. I am not trolling or being unhelpful but that that way you wouldn't need to worry about LHA and the absence of Private rents.

People sign on and off all the time, being unemployed is unlikely to be a lifelong situation

hanneil

My partner has always worked until he lost his job in March. This is the first time he has been unemployed and it's not a position he wants to be in for any longer than he needs but like everything in this country, if you want to work but can't get a job you get NO help. It seems to be the ones who don't want to work and have no intension of working get all the help. And that my friend in a nut shell is why this country is 165 billion pounds in debt.

dmg24

hanneil wrote: »

My partner has always worked until he lost his job in March. This is the first time he has been unemployed and it's not a position he wants to be in for any longer than he needs but like everything in this country, if you want to work but can't get a job you get NO help. It seems to be the ones who don't want to work and have no intension of working get all the help. And that my friend in a nut shell is why this country is 165 billion pounds in debt.

If you know so much about the economy I have to question why you are not running the country ... Oops, that would be because your massive generalisations are absolute nonsense!