jobseekers allowance income versus contribution

HappyMJ

And the silly thing if I did max all the credit cards out I couldn't just pay them all back again with the £25k as the minimum repayments are only 3% of the outstanding balance. Paying the entire balance off is also seen as deprivation.

tomerke

HappyMJ wrote: »

The problem with that is you are taking on further debt and now have capital. The DWP will see it now as capital so just leave things the way they are. I could go to the bank and max out all my credit cards that were once used for balance transfers many years ago. I'd have well over £25k but I wouldn't have way to pay them back and wouldn't get any benefits as I'd have £25k in the bank. It doesn't matter whether it's here in the UK or overseas.

ok yes it makes sense.
although credit cards is borrowed cash. Technically if i sell my property i have real capital. SO the 25k i draw down, is credit, but real cash in a sense..

HappyMJ

That's different again as the capital from a house sale can be ignored too for a period of time. You can then use it to pay 6 months rent in advance and all the costs that go with moving or you could use it to pay for a deposit on a smaller property. But then by not having a mortgage you wouldn't get SMI any more so it doesn't matter so much. You would still get your weekly JSA of £65.45 until that capital has been used for another house purchase. But then being unemployed you wouldn't get a mortgage so would have to find a house worth £100k. Unlikely.

HappyMJ

Another thing before I go. To be able to have borrowed £225k on a mortgage you must have had an income of £60,000. As soon as the mortgage lender finds out you are unemployed they will remove your access to the £25k that you have overpaid. To get access back to that you will need to get a job earning £60,000 again and go through another credit check.

tomerke

HappyMJ wrote: »

That's different again as the capital from a house sale can be ignored too for a period of time. You can then use it to pay 6 months rent in advance and all the costs that go with moving or you could use it to pay for a deposit on a smaller property. But then by not having a mortgage you wouldn't get SMI any more so it doesn't matter so much. You would still get your weekly JSA of £65.45 until that capital has been used for another house purchase. But then being unemployed you wouldn't get a mortgage so would have to find a house worth £100k. Unlikely.

i posted this on the other thread but didnt get a response..
basically my question is if you have say 14k of savings, and a 200k mortgage paying 3% interest..I will get 3.63% of interest paid by smi right? The extra 0.63% will go towards future interest payments (thats what the dwp site says).
And even if I had 3k of savings instead of 14k..AS FAR AS SMI GOES i get the same amount 3.63% of 200k right?
Thats the crux of my question..

dugdale_2

Much easier to go out and get a job then you wouldn't need to ask these questions

tomerke

dugdale wrote: »

Much easier to go out and get a job then you wouldn't need to ask these questions

I am just trying to work out my backup plans...This is the worst case scenario, but I would appreciate people being helpful rather than wasting time giving negative responses..

real1314

tomerke wrote: »

real...for the sake of argument intangible equity means there is equity there based on a subjective valuation of the property, and is not realizable unless sold..
In my case I am increasing my mortgage and transferring abroad..what is wrong with that?

That's tangible, not intangible. it has physical form (a house). What you are talking about is an "uncertain value", although with property the value is reasonably certain.

As for transferring cash/savings/investments abroad, they still count as savings. Not declaring them is fraud. You are almost certain to get caught if you do it.

AsknAnswer2

tomerke wrote: »

Even if they do I don't expect to mention it I guess. Any thoughts on this?? Thanks

Failing to declare a material fact, or misrepresentation = fraud.

tomerke wrote: »

and any thoughts on this hypothetical question...
Secondly what if someone was to say pay down their mortgage to purposely reduce their savings!

That's deliberate deprivation of capital. They will calculate your claim as if you still had the money, for JSA purposes. If you don't qualify for Income Based benefits (and with savings of 30-40K, you don't) then you cannot qualify for SMI.

If you want to take the risk go right on ahead. People on here aren't being nasty - they are trying to warn you. Do it your way and you could either be refused JSA(IB) and subsequently SMI for deprivation at best. At worst you could be living at Her Majestys pleasure, and I don't mean Buckingham Palace. Prison is not inevitable for all frauds but for one where it has been planned from the outset, it would be a serious possibility. Remember, they can also lok at your a long time after you have stopped claiming benefits. So, even where you appear to have got off with it, they could find out many years later down the line and prosecute then. Do you really want to have the weight of that on your shoulders just because you want the state to fund your lifestyle rather than fund it yourself? Carry on and the state will fund it, but as a prisoner and with your liberty lost.

Indie_Kid

Can they (I believe I asked for this - had issues with getting bank statements) look at your bank accounts without your permission?