renting room to ex?

sparkiedave

Right then, this may seem a bit unusual but, myself and my ex are still living in the same house while we sort out getting it sold, the mortgage etc is in my name, we have talked about the possibility of either of us moving out while we sell, which could take a while, I am on a DMP so if I suddenly have a change of address the creditors may get a bit tetchy, and the mortgage company would have to agree first, if my ex moved out she'd struggle to find anything sensible.
She claims a benefit which would mean her rent would be paid, whereas, I am self employed.
"IF" she were to rent a room from me while we sort things out, what would we have to do to show the DHSS we were not living together as a couple?
We are not trying to defraud anyone of anything, if she moved elsewhere she would have to pay rent, and if she moved out, I would take on a lodger to help pay bills till the house was sold

MrsManda

DWP guidance says:

Renting a former joint home from your ex-partner

You cannot get HB if you pay rent to your ex-partner if you have separated and you have remained in the former joint home. This applies whether you were a married or unmarried couple.

http://www.dwp.gov.uk/publications/specialist-guides/technical-guidance/rr2-a-guide-to-housing-benefit/housing-benefit/

so I don't think she'll be able to claim housing benefit in order to pay rent to you.

karenx

What did she do to help pay her way beforehand? Can she not continue to do so
You cannot have a mortgage then claim help with rent on the exact same house

allen35

I would suggest you encourage your ex partner to be looking for alternative accomodation anyway, what are the plans when the property is sold, you state 'when we sell' i take it this means your ex partner has a financial interest in the property!!

If you don't intend getting back together why wait! It's going to happen eventually.

I have come across this situation before and the ex partner received a large overpayment from DWP, HMRC and Local Authority due to being classed as fraud.

Jowo_2

The Turn2us and LHA Direct website will indicate the benefit entitlements when you separate.

I really don't think the creditors attitude to a change of address is a reason for you to worry about either party moving to a new porperty. They have no influence in these matters.

HappyMJ

sparkiedave wrote: »

Right then, this may seem a bit unusual but, myself and my ex are still living in the same house while we sort out getting it sold, the mortgage etc is in my name, we have talked about the possibility of either of us moving out while we sell, which could take a while, I am on a DMP so if I suddenly have a change of address the creditors may get a bit tetchy, and the mortgage company would have to agree first, if my ex moved out she'd struggle to find anything sensible.
She claims a benefit which would mean her rent would be paid, whereas, I am self employed.
"IF" she were to rent a room from me while we sort things out, what would we have to do to show the DHSS we were not living together as a couple?
We are not trying to defraud anyone of anything, if she moved elsewhere she would have to pay rent, and if she moved out, I would take on a lodger to help pay bills till the house was sold

As has been said she can't rent from you for the house she lived in or owned previously. If she owns a share of the house how much is her share worth after fees (deemed at 10% of valuation) and mortgage have been paid. If it's too much it may affect a HB/LHA claim elsewhere. It's not DHSS you claim from that was years ago. Housing Benefits also known as Local Housing Allowance can be claimed from the local council.

You can't show them you are not living as a couple it's the history your relationship for which you can't demonstrate that you were a couple.

sparkiedave

ok folks, thanks for the help, didn't want to start that particular ball rolling if it wasn't feasable, yes she has a small claim in the property, which to be honest, if it takes a while to sell, I could probably pay her without selling, these places are often on the market for over a year, and if I could rent out a room I would raise that money a lot quicker, life gets complicated don't it!! I'll just have to work like a nutter for a while and see if I can scrape the money together while it's up for sale!