Housing benefit question

hmc

Hi
How is hb worked out please? I started self employed a yr ago part time 16 hrs , I'm a single mum.
I started out charging most of my clients min wage do I presume hb was worked out based on that?
Do I get lha rate based on what I earn? So do I need to inform housing if I put my prices up or do they do an annual review like wtc do ?
Thankyou

rogerblack

You need to inform them of any income changes.
It doesn't matter if you do 16 hours at 10 pounds an hour, or half an hour at 320 pounds an hour, from HBs perspective.

BigAunty

HB is based on income but there are sometimes additional rules about what business expenses can or cannot be included when it comes to working out valid deductions that may be different from ones that the HMRC accept.

Probably won't really affect a business like yours with minimum expenses - I'm thinking of a recent post by a self employed photographer who seemed to spend all or most of their annual income on an expensive camera which was not accepted by the HB officers at the local council. In that case, the HB department included their turnover and ignored the purchase, leading to a big overpayment of HB for the claimant to pay back.

Most councils will publish info on their website about how the self employed should submit their income (profit/expenses). I've identified that Hackney council have a comprehensive guide to help the self employed with their HB so their info may also help.

keith1950

Hi, put in a claim based on your last 4 weeks/months income , they will process this usually within 6-8 weeks.

Once you are in receipt of hb send in the latest payslip each month.

This will ensure you are not under/overpaid to any great extent.

( It is based on total income so tax credits, maintenance payments and various other incomes need to be declared. )