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housing benefit

MY daughter is at university and lives away durring term time, although she still has a room here and comes home when not at uni. We have been told by local council that we are not entitled to Housing Benefit for her room. Is this correct.
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Comments

  • Muscle750
    Muscle750 Posts: 1,075 Forumite
    Sorry your not making sense here are you on housing benefit now yourselves? Id like to think that you werent thinking of renting her room out and getting some lodgers and be paid by the tax payer.
  • kj*daisy
    kj*daisy Posts: 490 Forumite
    Are you talking about the spare room reduction in your housing benefit?
    Grocery challenge July £250

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  • No we are not our HB has been reduced because she is not here.
  • PasturesNew
    PasturesNew Posts: 70,698 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    Are you privately renting?
  • Its not a spare room it is still hers for when she is not at home. The council say that because she is at university she does not live with us anymore and therefore we are not entitled to HB for her room.
  • Yes we are renting privately
  • Muscle750
    Muscle750 Posts: 1,075 Forumite
    Id be fighting that statement because if shes still coming home and using the room etc plus the rent on the house is still the same which is been paid in full or part by the state. Can i be rude and ask how much HB you get and by how much they want to reduce it by?
    And as your renting privately the landlord isnt going to take a reduced rent because the rooms not used
    I think you got a strong case here id be speaking to someone with a brain rather than some plank doing a jobs worth asap
  • The council have reduced HB from 3 rooms to two, we have a working son who pays his share of the rent and council tax as a nondependant and as I am a pensioner on state pension and do a small job as well this is how we qualify for HB. We have to make up rent to our landlord which has made things difficult.
  • Housing benefit will not pay for you to have a spare bedroom.
  • Muscle750
    Muscle750 Posts: 1,075 Forumite
    I think you might be on a sticky wicket with your son paying etc and your small job, How did they find out shed gone to uni thou, i would seek advice asap but i think you might be in for a nasty surprise. Hope your not thou.
    All failing i would speak to landlord see if there wasnt any room for negotation
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