Housing benefit and under occupancy

seven-day-weekend

bright_side wrote: »

It will only only effect people in receipt of housing benefit. It will not effect people who can afford to pay their full rent - they can afford to stay in their homes no matter how many spare rooms they have.

Oh of course....senior moment there!:rotfl:

BigAunty

bright_side wrote: »

The difference being that private tenants know where they stand from the word go. Social tenants, some of whom have lived in their homes for a very long time and have spent a huge amount of money on them are suddenly having the goal posts changed. Obviously had social tenants known this would happen, they wouldn't have bothered!

But it is recognised that the full receipt of HB acts as a disincentive to downsize when children move away and is a key driver of the huge amount of under occupancy in the social sector. Even though there are schemes that offer one-off cash incentives to encourage those with empty rooms to move to a smaller property, they are rarely effective.

In my last borough, which has a huge shortage of family housing, housing offices approached every tenant underoccupying a 4/5 bedroom properties to offer them a cash bonus and priority securing another property and virtually none were recovered.

It is the long term behaviour of social housing tenants feeling entitled to live in properties larger than their needs which has helped fuel the current housing shortage.

Let's be clear about the scale of the problem. There is around 3.3 million social housing tenants and apparently it is approaching somewhere between 660,000 to a million spare bedrooms, costing 0.5 billion on the housing benefit budget. Around a third of social housing tenants have spare rooms.

bestpud

FBaby wrote: »

Except for those who suddenly can't afford to pay their rent because their hours are cut or are made redundant and they are given 2 months notice to get out if they can't pay any longer...

This is widely publicised so tenants need to make sure they have a back up plan in place, in the same way those with a mortgage should.

If they don't do that while they are working then, frankly, they only have themselves to blame if they reveive an eviction notice.

It's about social housing tenants taking a bit of responsibility for staying in their homes and I don't think it's a bad move tbh.

I say that as a HA tenant. We aren't affected now but it has made us think more about the effects of redundancy etc. I've obviously thought about it before as my OH has survived two rounds of redundancy now and it's stressful to say the least, but I haven't really worried about the house before - now I will!

Is that a bad thing? I think we and many others have taken social housing for granted for a long time - too long!

Popperwell

But it's coming to HA properties and...it is said that HA's are going to charge slightly more BT than council's/LA's do.

FBaby

bestpud wrote: »

This is widely publicised so tenants need to make sure they have a back up plan in place, in the same way those with a mortgage should.

If they don't do that while they are working then, frankly, they only have themselves to blame if they reveive an eviction notice.

It's about social housing tenants taking a bit of responsibility for staying in their homes and I don't think it's a bad move tbh.

I say that as a HA tenant. We aren't affected now but it has made us think more about the effects of redundancy etc. I've obviously thought about it before as my OH has survived two rounds of redundancy now and it's stressful to say the least, but I haven't really worried about the house before - now I will!

Is that a bad thing? I think we and many others have taken social housing for granted for a long time - too long!

I agree 100% with you. No housing is ever completely secure and you shouldn't take any form for granted. I was just stating that social housing tenants shouldn't assume that they are exempt from protecting themselves any differently to anyone else.

Popperwell

PippaGirl wrote: »

When it's just me here I plan to turn the gas off and just wear several layers of clothes plus dressing gown in the winter so I can afford the BT if I'm still on HB.

Pressure may still be put on us so we have no choice but to go...but that will be very much what I will be doing to Pippa unless I give in and decide a smaller property is the way to go even if it's horrible and in a bad part of town...away from eveything.

I think I will have to find approx £1,500 to pay for the BT and water rates and there are changes coming regarding the CT which will cost more so even being very frugal in other ways, it may still not be enough.

As Brightside has alluded to...and as you said earlier you may have to start using your DLA towards what it was not intended but if that is reduced/taken away and the new replacement is 20% less. If you can get it...I'll be doing the same.

Life was never fair and that is true even if you are fit and can work you are constantly afraid of losing the roof over your head because you may lose your job or the wage is too poor and perhaps having managed to perhaps get a decent standard of life we seem to be being forced to go back to times we thought we'd left behind...

Also, many are starting to attack others instead of supporting each other and when we are divided we are lost.

I have never taken my home for granted...

bestpud

Popperwell wrote: »

But it's coming to HA properties and...it is said that HA's are going to charge slightly more BT than council's/LA's do.

HA tenancies are social housing and come under exactly the same rules as council housing.

The reason it doesn't affect us is we aren't claiming HB and we aren't under occupied.

bestpud

Popperwell wrote: »

Pressure may still be put on us so we have no choice but to go...but that will be very much what I will be doing to Pippa unless I give in and decide a smaller property is the way to go even if it's horrible and in a bad part of town...away from eveything.

I think I will have to find approx £1,500 to pay for the BT and water rates and there are changes coming regarding the CT which will cost more so even being very frugal in other ways, it may still not be enough.

As Brightside has alluded to...and as you said earlier you may have to start using your DLA towards what it was not intended but if that is reduced/taken away and the new replacement is 20% less. If you can get it...I'll be doing the same.

Life was never fair and that is true even if you are fit and can work you are constantly afraid of losing the roof over your head because you may lose your job or the wage is too poor and perhaps having managed to perhaps get a decent standard of life we seem to be being forced to go back to times we thought we'd left behind...

Also, many are starting to attack others instead of supporting each other and when we are divided we are lost.

I have never taken my home for granted...

It's hard not to take social housing for granted - I think we all do to some extent. The reasons we take it for granted are the same ones that have thousands on waiting lists for them!

I disagree about the DLA - it is to provide for needs related to your disability so, in my eyes at least, paying extra for a larger house because your disability means you can't downsize or need extra room is what DLA is intended for.

Popperwell

bestpud wrote: »

It's hard not to take social housing for granted - I think we all do to some extent. The reasons we take it for granted are the same ones that have thousands on waiting lists for them!

I disagree about the DLA - it is to provide for needs related to your disability so, in my eyes at least, paying extra for a larger house because your disability means you can't downsize or need extra room is what DLA is intended for.

Thank you for saying that Bestpud...I hope if I stay put I can afford to absorb the cost even if it means using the DLA...or rather the replacement. Next year is going to be very difficult for so many.

This year hasn't been great and in a way it has prepared the way ahead. Though I doubt things can be reversed it has not been helped by the media ignoring much of what is happening and some misinformation being put out which often means various groups are seen as scroungers and people fall out/attack others. Instead of supporting each other.

And usually its those who have the least or are most disadvantaged/vulnerable.

hunters

Popperwell wrote: »

Pressure may still be put on us so we have no choice but to go...but that will be very much what I will be doing to Pippa unless I give in and decide a smaller property is the way to go even if it's horrible and in a bad part of town...away from eveything.

I think I will have to find approx £1,500 to pay for the BT and water rates and there are changes coming regarding the CT which will cost more so even being very frugal in other ways, it may still not be enough.

As Brightside has alluded to...and as you said earlier you may have to start using your DLA towards what it was not intended but if that is reduced/taken away and the new replacement is 20% less. If you can get it...I'll be doing the same.

Life was never fair and that is true even if you are fit and can work you are constantly afraid of losing the roof over your head because you may lose your job or the wage is too poor and perhaps having managed to perhaps get a decent standard of life we seem to be being forced to go back to times we thought we'd left behind...

Also, many are starting to attack others instead of supporting each other and when we are divided we are lost.

I have never taken my home for granted...

I understand that DLA is for extra costs for living with a disability such as taxis, wheelchair, equipment etc so I assume you have other income on top of that which pays for your rent, food and utilities?

If you were to downsize then surely heating costs and water rates, council tax will reduce? Perhaps you need to post your SOA on the DFW board and people will see where costs can be cut.