Private rent problem

yved33

Hi, my husband and i have just decided to get divorced . We live in private rented accomodation with our 13 year old daughter and are on the council housing list. My husband is keen to move out but one thing that worries us both is, my brother is guarantor for our rent, i don't work atm but husband does, if he moves out and stops paying the rent, will my brother be liable for it or will the council increase the housing benefit to cover the rent ? Will be going to the CAB next week to sort everything out hopefully but wondered if anyone knows what would happen in this situation ? Many thanks

rozmister

It depends if your rent falls in the amount of LHA you can claim for a property in your area that the council deems adequate for your needs (You can't claim 5 bed allowance if it's you and a cat kind of thing). Do you receive any housing benefit already?

yved33

Hi, it's a 3 bed house, we do get some HB already, about a third of the rent. I ideally would like to stay here with our daughter, but also don't mind if they move us to a smaller ( 2 bed) property, i just don't want to suddenly dump £775 a month on my brother . I am starting an OU course in May, so hopefully employment is on the horizon . If husband moves out and i don't have any income, will my brother, as guarantor (sp?) be liable ? :eek: Thanks

rozmister

HB will cover some of the cost I'm not sure what the rules is about having 2 in a 3 bed your council office is most able to help but if your property is very cheap for the area it may not be a problem. The best thing to do is talk to your HB office. You can always check out this website I found for more information, to calculate what you could have and to find out the allowances in your area.
http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/MoneyTaxAndBenefits/BenefitsTaxCreditsAndOtherSupport/On_a_low_income/DG_10018928

With the rent your guarantor they will be liable for any rent due til the end of the contract/your notice expires. So if you are 3 months into a 6 month contract on the property the guarantor is liable for the 3 months left (providing you hand in notice according to the contract) but if you're on a rolling contract (month to month) and you gave notice he is liable until you move out e.g. you have to give one months notice but don't have a penny for rent he can be chased for that one months rent.

Britwife

You may get more hb but is your husband able to cover the rest or won't he have to pay child support for your daughter?

The best thing to do is ring the benefits office and see how they can help.

Hobo17

have you looked at entitledto? input your details for you on your own and it should give you some ideas on what you can claim.

RAS

You need to know the Local Housing Allowance - the maximum they will pay for your housing needs, and check www.turn2us.co.uk to get an idea of the amount you will get.

They maybe able to chase your brother for any deficit, but this depends very much what documents he signed. GO voer to the housing forum to get help on this -and ask BRo if he signed a deed.