Conditions of students paying council tax

drrdb1993

Hi,

Me and some friends have a bit of a dilemma. We are a group of 5 looking to rent together as a group next year. We are all first year medical students in London. One of our group has had some health problems and so has had to defer their exam entry until later this summer (July 2012). This means that should they fail their retake date would be next year (May 2013). Due to medical school policy they would then be enrolled as a part-time student. Therefore we were wondering:

a) Will the house be subject to pay council tax?
b) Will this person be solely responsible for paying the tax or, more likely, will the house as a whole be responsible for payment?
c) Any other useful information regarding council tax?

Thanks!

Torry_Quine

If all are full time students then no council tax due. If one person isn't full time then they are liable for council tax with 25% discount. However I'm not certain what constitutes full time as even though part time hours by him it may still be classed as full time by the university.

HappyMJ

There is several ways of doing this. I would have a lead tenant who collects all the rent in advance and pays all the bills and who also has all the reponsibility of making all payments on time in their own name. Or you could be jointly and severally liable for every bill and if someone does not pay then you have to collectively chase them or pay it for them. That is the same with the council tax each person would be responsible for paying the whole lot even though you would individually be exempt.

My tip...don't let non-students move in.

marliepanda

You won't be liable for full council tax, I got a 25% reduction on the full bill for me being a student (with my partner in full time work)

I would have thought with 4 out of 5 being students it would be more, but you would have to ask the council.

Are you renting a house as 5 people, or are you going to be separately renting 5 rooms in a house (HMO)? HMO's usually mean the landlord is responsible for the council tax, which could get iffy if he has agreed to rent it to 5 students and then one isnt a student...

paddedjohn

marliepanda wrote: »

You won't be liable for full council tax, I got a 25% reduction on the full bill for me being a student (with my partner in full time work)

I would have thought with 4 out of 5 being students it would be more, but you would have to ask the council.

Are you renting a house as 5 people, or are you going to be separately renting 5 rooms in a house (HMO)? HMO's usually mean the landlord is responsible for the council tax, which could get iffy if he has agreed to rent it to 5 students and then one isnt a student...

I dont think you got 25% discount, as a full time student you are exempt and your partner qualified for the single occupants discount of 25%.

drrdb1993

marliepanda wrote: »

Are you renting a house as 5 people, or are you going to be separately renting 5 rooms in a house (HMO)? HMO's usually mean the landlord is responsible for the council tax, which could get iffy if he has agreed to rent it to 5 students and then one isnt a student...

This is an interesting point. All 5 of us are students, the issue would be that one of us, according to the university, could be part-time if they fail exams first time round. Do you have any links to the appropriate legislation to support this point you have made?

p.s
Thanks for all the replies so far - they have all be equally informative. Anything else you wish to share would be useful I'm sure.

londonlydia

The best thing to do is to go in and ask the adviser's at your university, ideally the person who is afflicted. State the dilemma, and explain the impact it will have on you financially.

In my experience, universities have funds for hardship/ emergencies, and are also very understanding when it comes to student hardship. Internally they may regard the student as part-time, but it may well be worth checking if that's what they communicate externally (it wont be just council tax, it could also be their student loan affected).

I went to a well-known northern uni, and I myself ended up being in hospital for some time in my 4th year. In the end it worked out better for me to simply repeat the year than catch up and stress. The uni were very understanding and didnt make me pay tuition fees for the 2nd year which they well could have. At the end of the day, these institutions are run by people, and sometimes a face-to-face chat with the right people can go 100x further than relying on what is written on policies etc.

mchale

If the person who is part time gets a CT exemption form off the univ, then you will not pay CT.

I think you will find property will be classed as a HMO, regardless of what TA you have signed.

CIS

If the person who is part time gets a CT exemption form off the univ, then you will not pay CT.

If they are part time the university should not be providing a student certificate stating a person is full time - if they do so they are acting illegally.

I think you will find property will be classed as a HMO, regardless of what TA you have signed.

It may be for planning & licensing purposes but if its a standard joint tenancy then it wont be a Council Tax HMO.

b) Will this person be solely responsible for paying the tax or, more likely, will the house as a whole be responsible for payment?

That person would be fully responsible for the Council Tax (with a 25% discount).

mchale

CIS wrote: »

It may be for planning & licensing purposes but if its a standard joint tenancy then it wont be a Council Tax HMO.

So if its a standard AST with joint & severally liability and all tenants sign it, who is responsible for CT bill should 1 arise.

HappyMJ

mchale wrote: »

So if its a standard AST with joint & severally liability and all tenants sign it, who is responsible for CT bill should 1 arise.

The person who is not exempt as a student would be responsible for it. Possibly with a 25% discount.