renting issue

Beckyy

Being blunt your daughter is your priority and has to come first.

It would be helpful if you knew exactly how much money she had coming in and what benefits she has or is entitled to. Whilst I'm not saying that she is well off, it could be a case of her being able to afford to pay some rent - it depends what you class as 'no money'.

I'm not sure if it is appropriate, but have you tried talking to Shelter? They may be able to advise you on the options for you MIL and what she may be entited to.

Could she live with one of her other children?

ETA: 1 person living in a 4 bed house does seem a little crazy. The council tax and utilities alone with be hugely inflated because of the size of it. Does she pay for those?

RAS

doughnut-gal wrote: »

She really doesn't want to move - her sons claim they cannot afford anything they said she would become a "bag lady" if I evict her! It so hard because I have to consider my daughter if something did happen to her she might never forgive me although she does realise that all our money is tied up in that property!

Her sons are talking out of their rear ends.

Whilst MIL lives in your house, she cannot claim Local Housing Allowance. Because she has been there rent-free, the minute you charge rent, it becomes a contrived tenancy, because the rent will have to be paid by the Local Housing Allowance. In order to confirm it is not a contrived tenancy, you have to be prepared to evict her.

If your ex-husband had charged rent form day one, you would probably have been OK.

What worries me is that if MIL continues to live there you may well find that because she has not paid rent she has "squatter's rights" very shortly and then you cannot remove her or sell. You need to see a solicitor urgently.

pmlindyloo

RAS wrote: »

Her sons are talking out of their rear ends.

Whilst MIL lives in your house, she cannot claim Local Housing Allowance. Because she has been there rent-free, the minute you charge rent, it becomes a contrived tenancy, because the rent will have to be paid by the Local Housing Allowance. In order to confirm it is not a contrived tenancy, you have to be prepared to evict her.

If your ex-husband had charged rent form day one, you would probably have been OK.

What worries me is that if MIL continues to live there you may well find that because she has not paid rent she has "squatter's rights" very shortly and then you cannot remove her or sell. You need to see a solicitor urgently.

I do not see how she can have 'squatters rights'. To be a 'squatter' you would be living there without the owner's permission. She (at the moment) has the owner's permission.

doughnut-gal

I agree my daughter is my priority - if the council will not pay the rent then I will probably have to evict her which does seem stupid when they will have to pay to house her elsewhere but if that is how the system works ............... She really is on a very low income so I know she won't be able to pay me rent but surely if I have let her live there rent free since 04 the LHA can see I am not trying to rip them off - i could have done it year's ago. She pays the gas and electricity - she doesnt have to pay council tax and I know that following her last gas bill she switched everything off! Her sons are just happy to me to carry on they don't seem to care.

Beckyy

How much is the property worth?

doughnut-gal

Property is worth about 250k

princeofpounds

The way I see it is that if a soft approach (point her in the direction of sheltered housing or other solutions) doesn't work then you will need to be more assertive with the four brothers.

Think of this way; if she needs to be supported by her family, she is the equal responsibility of every member, not just you. Every one of the five of you should be paying 20% of any care, so a fairer settlement would be to charge 80% of market rent (minus costs you would incur renting on the market), split between the four brothers.

You would not be being selfish, you would be making the same contribution as every other member of the family (only in discount rather than cash).

If they can't see this, tot up the amount (doubtless thousands) you have spent on her housing by not letting the property out.

If she ends up on the street, it's not because you chucked her out but because they won't pay for her.

I suspect you are in for a tough time. People can become very selfish and irrational wih all sorts of poor justifications when they are forced to pay something they have taken for granted for so long.

Another point to realise is that she might be eligible for more support from the state if she were to be evicted. That includes housing (although the quality is variable).

tbs624

As RAS says, the fact that MIL has been living there rent free to date would mean that if you now started charging her rent , and she needs to claim HB/LHA to pay it, it is very likely to fall into the category of a contrived tenancy in the eyes of the HB/LHA officers.

Don't be browbeaten by these BILs - their mother is primarily their responsibility, if she is in need of support.

Get a fixed fee appointment with an experienced local solicitor so that you can move this forward.

doughnut-gal

Actually, Prince of Pounds. that sounds like a really good idea I think I might put a letter together suggesting that! It just seems stupid that if i make her homeless the council will have to help her so why carnt they help her stay in her own home!

yes, I totally agree she is no longer my responsibility - i have done over and above what should have been expected of my but this family and playing very clever!

princeofpounds

I totally agree she is no longer my responsibility

Not quite what I said, if it were me, and if my relationship with her was good, I would consider myself as partly responsible as she is family through marriage.

But I know what you mean, you have more than paid your share of the burden over the years.