Can you get help with rent payments when claiming Tax Credits?

ironman1

Hopefully someone can help. Here are my details...

25 year old living with Fiance in a Shared Ownership property in London (Part buy-Part Rent).

Have four month old Son.

I am a self employed builder, not on a great income. GF is on Maternity leave and getting the basic £128 odd a week, but this ends next month.

Is there anyway we can get help paying the rent/service charge on our home? Obviously the mortgage is down to us but the Rent/SC comes to £375pm which is a large chunk of our outgoings.

We currently receive £59pw from Tax Credits. My GF wants to go back to work but we will struggle to pay the nursery fees even with help from any sort of benefits.

At the moment we are fine but when the Maternity payments run out in a few weeks we will have very little coming in.

On a basic month I earn £1,260 and out outgoings are around £1,400. That does include all bills and things like travel to work and food shopping.

I have looked at every way possible to cut back and have used Cashback sites and so on. I literally can't get the bills down any lower than what we are paying now.

What are our options? I already work 7am-4.30pm every day so an extra job would probably make my building work suffer. I am constantly shattered as it is. I have been doing overtime but that has completely dried up.

I've worked out that from next month if things stay the same, we'll actually be about £50/100pm in debt so to speak.

If anyone else is in the same position, or even has advice I would be very grateful.

Thanks for reading, hope I haven't come across as a moaner as I know alot of people are worse off.

viktory

LOL, my husband worked longer hours than that for well over three years! Sorry, but i agree with everything Hammyman says. Go to to the Debt Free Wannabe and Old Style Boards on ways to cut back on your goings and feed a family on a tight budget. Unfortunately, home ownership and babies are expensive!

DaisyFlower

SMP is paid for nine months so why is it ending next month if your child is only 4 months? Presumably your fiance didnt start SMP four months before the birth?

As you finish work earlier than most, theres no reason why you cant take over the childcare and your partner work evenings/weekends.

Did you not think about this when you planned a child? Always amazes me how people do something that affects finances in a big way but never give it a thought as to whether they can actually afford it.

gauly

Just to point out £375 appears to just be the rent part of the OP's housing costs - presumably there are some large mortgage costs on top of this. Anyway, it's an interesting question that hasn't been answered: if you part own/part rent can you get help with the rent part of your housing costs? I'm guessing the answer is no, but I'm not sure.

Oldernotwiser

gauly wrote: »

Just to point out £375 appears to just be the rent part of the OP's housing costs - presumably there are some large mortgage costs on top of this. Anyway, it's an interesting question that hasn't been answered: if you part own/part rent can you get help with the rent part of your housing costs? I'm guessing the answer is no, but I'm not sure.

Well spotted re the mortgage but I think that you can get help with the rent part in these circumstances but can't yet come up with a reference to support this.

ETA. I've found this - relevant paragraphs are "Long-leaseholders and Co-ownership schemes."

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

ironman1

Yeah the £375 is the rent/service charge, the mortgage payments are another £500 on top of that.

Am I missing some posts here as the replies are confusing...

My main point was is it possible to get help on rent costs. No need to reply with rude answers surely! Anyone would think I was one of them lazy work shy types who have a baby and get everything EVERYTHING done for them, **** knows what you'd say in response to them asking a similar question!

skintandscared_2

£300 a week, in London? That's really low. Is it really that bad at the moment? My OH is a self employed painter and decorator and gets about £110 gross, per day, out of London - but the Jobcentre site shows wages in London at minimum wage (with travel costs on top!!) You might get better rates out of London! The building industry seems to be overloaded in London at the moment with certain ... erm ... nationalities willing to work for less than minimum wage but who do a pretty poor job.....

ironman1

Yep, £400pw, take away the tax and it's just over £300pw. I'm not fully qualified yet so will be on this low money for at least two more years.

sunnyone

ironman1 wrote: »

Yep, £400pw, take away the tax and it's just over £300pw. I'm not fully qualified yet so will be on this low money for at least two more years.

You are 25 and not yet qualified?

Hammyman

ironman1 wrote: »

Yeah the £375 is the rent/service charge, the mortgage payments are another £500 on top of that.

OK, so the cost of the roof is over your head is £875 a month. Your income currently is just over £2000 a month and you can't afford to live on £1200 a month AFTER you've paid your rent, mortgage and SC??

We, a family of four, can afford to live on that AND pay the mortgage out of it.

How many debts do you have?

Benefits help but for people who have little money to live on, not people who have little money to live on because they have loans, credit card bills and a lot of needless outgoings.

I suggest you take all your debts and bills over to the Debt Free Wannabee forum and post a statement of affairs there.

Hammyman

Oldernotwiser wrote: »

Well spotted re the mortgage but I think that you can get help with the rent part in these circumstances but can't yet come up with a reference to support this.

They can't because they have £1200 a month after housing costs to live on for a family of two, soon to be three.