MSE News: Benefit cap has 'couple penalty'

FBaby

How is that any different to working families? Their salary also goes for the most part paying rent/mortgage. The issue of high cost accommodation is not specific to people on benefits.

poppasmurf_bewdley

I would have thought that, even if a couple was caught up in the 'benefit cap' they would find it exceedingly difficult to split into two households.

Where is the second home going to come from? I cannot see the council or housing association jumping in and immediately offering the splitting up couple a second home. More likely, they will be offered bed and breakfast or hostel accomodation. Or they could go into privately rented accomodation, but with the restraints being put onto that nowadays, it may cost more than they will save by splitting up.

I think the government will be well aware of this situation, and will already have plans for dealing with it. The DWP will be on the lookout for just such a thing happening and will be willing to make a decision that the split is purely for the purpose of avoiding the cap and stop the claim of one (or both) the claimants.

rotoguys

Oldernotwiser wrote: »

Rather unfortunate that they don't do what's best for the children, particularly when they get so much money for having them!

Children cost money - fact. If you are on a limited benefit income there is only so much you can do with the fishes and loafs of bread!

Personally I don't really understand why those who are working are making such a fuss.

When I was working full time and earning a damn good salary, the last thing on my mind was to belittle those on benefits. I didn't really give the subject a thought. I lived my life without regard to what others were or wern't getting courtesy of the state.

It seems to me that too many people out there have too much time on their hands doing nothing but moaning on sites like this.
I would say to them to get a life, and enjoy it and not complain about how others live theirs.

Sixer

You can't really blame the landlords (with the proviso that BTL loans were given too easily, like all mortgages, and anyway, easy mortgages, BTL or otherwise, are a thing of the past now). BTL landlords aren't making a 20% return on their investment, or anything like it. We need a private rental sector and those landlords do need some kind of return.

What you can blame is successive governments from Thatcher onwards, whatever the party, who treat house prices in this country as untouchable. House prices need to come down generally. The relatively low paid need to have at least some aspiration towards home ownership in the future, if they show prudence, and for affordable rent right now.

What we need is a house price crash and a government willing to consider ameliorating the losses for mortgage holders in some way, rather than pumping useless money into propping up banks and, by extension, house prices.

Oldernotwiser

Sixer wrote: »

You can't really blame the landlords (with the proviso that BTL loans were given too easily, like all mortgages, and anyway, easy mortgages, BTL or otherwise, are a thing of the past now). BTL landlords aren't making a 20% return on their investment, or anything like it. We need a private rental sector and those landlords do need some kind of return.

What you can blame is successive governments from Thatcher onwards, whatever the party, who treat house prices in this country as untouchable. House prices need to come down generally. The relatively low paid need to have at least some aspiration towards home ownership in the future, if they show prudence, and for affordable rent right now.

What we need is a house price crash and a government willing to consider ameliorating the losses for mortgage holders in some way, rather than pumping useless money into propping up banks and, by extension, house prices.

And you can also blame them for not building more social housing, particularly from the sales of RTB properties.

Sixer

Oldernotwiser wrote: »

And you can also blame them for not building more social housing, particularly from the sales of RTB properties.

Absolutely. All of them. It's not a party issue.

Successive governments have hidden their failed economic policies behind easy credit and rising house prices. These made people feel richer and take their eye off the ball in terms of what politicians were doing to the economy. And now the merrygoround has stopped, leaving large swathes of people unable to afford housing.

People on this board can go on and on and Ariston about f-ecklessness and senses of entitlement. And I wouldn't argue that there aren't some f-eckless and irresponsible people out there. But the fact remains that there aren't enough jobs in the economy and a significant proportion of the jobs there are don't pay enough to ensure adequate housing. And that this is a direct consequence of economic policy from all parties.

Something must be done. And I mean something other than whipping up hatred of benefits claimants. It's nothing more than persuading white trailer park Americans to hate the blacks fighting for civil rights.

We need more social housing, falling house prices, and an administration that recognises corporate welfare costs the country a lot more money even than the considerable number of billions that go to individual benefits claimants.

Oneday77

A couple working full time on NMW will take home £21922 after Tax and NI in total, not including any London top ups. If they had a child they would probably qualify for some working tax credit and get an additional £1000ish ChildBenefit.

That couple would be working 80 hours a week but someone else could be getting £26,000 for another household doing no work at all. There is no way that is fair to hard workers who then contribute to the welfare system in tax and NI.

People travel to new towns and cities to get jobs, why can't people on capped benefits move to cheaper areas so that the benefits stretch further? The last I checked there was more to the UK than just inside the M25 to live.

People get made redundant, fall ill, suffer injuries, disabilities etc they should get benefits but also shouldn't expect to not potentially get more than they did while working. Anyone who has never had a job but can claim upto £26,000 should consider it a job and carry out a public service role rather than sit on their backside.

Bogof_Babe

Sixer wrote: »

What we need is a house price crash and a government willing to consider ameliorating the losses for mortgage holders in some way, rather than pumping useless money into propping up banks and, by extension, house prices.

Leaving those who have already paid for their homes to wallow in their devaluation?

Sixer

Bogof_Babe wrote: »

Leaving those who have already paid for their homes to wallow in their devaluation?

Possibly. It isn't possible to find a solution that will see nobody with any losses. But those people will, crucially, still own a home and have a roof over their heads. We need to think going forwards and how we are going to house people in a low-wage service economy, which is what we will have for at least the next 20-30 years. And at the rate China and India are turning out top quality science and technology graduates, we probably need to be thinking about how we are going to house people for the forseeable future as in forever, ad infinitum. Better a small proportion (those with fully paid-for houses now) of a single generation than a much larger proportion of every generation to come.

furndire

wellynever wrote: »

As a couple who are on benefits this as no affect on me even though we have two bedrooms.

It will if you have to put a new claim in - change of circumstances