Help please.......

Buntyb_2

Hi i'm new to this so please be gentle with me.

Just needing some advice regarding Housing Benefit and taking in a boarder/lodger.

Here's a brief outline of circumstances......

I am a full time carer for my mother who claims AA - my son lives with me - he claims JSA. Because of this i get full Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit.
I live in a 3 bedroom Housing Association property.
Now here's the thing - my son has a friend who is due to be made homeless i've told her she can come and stay at my house to help her out and i will charge her £50 a week - she is 23 works part time 25 hours @minimum wage. I will include food with this because i can't see the point in the cooker being used twice and i always cook too much anyway! So that would make her a boarder rather than a lodger.
Having looked on line it seems i have to emphasis that fact that she is a boarder and NOT a lodger to the Housing Benefit Office and Income Support - is this correct?
And does anyone know how this will reflect my Income Support/Housing Benefit/Council Tax Benefit?
This is only a short term arrangement but i would like to inform the relevant authorities.
Thank you very much in advance.
Regards

iluvmarmite

Take a Boarder / lodger
63. With the agreement of the landlord a claimant may be able to take in a boarder or lodger to fill any unoccupied room. This would mean the room would not be treated as unoccupied for the purposes of applying the size criteria rule and the claimant may find they are better off due to the additional income. For more information see the fact sheet in the toolkit at Annex C/ page 40
64.Any income from a boarder could have an effect on other benefit a claimant receives so it is important to make them aware of any interaction with other benefit when discussing this option. For more information on the effects of additional income on Housing Benefit see the fact sheet in the toolkit at Annex C/ page 42

Hope this helps, it's from a legislation site for the new housing benefit rules

Buntyb_2

Thanks for that - in the meantime i have called the Housing Benefit office and found out some useful information.

If you take in a boarder the rules are different to non-dependant deductions - Housing Benefit will disregard the first £20 of payment received then they will half the remainder - they will then deduct the benefit by this amount - in my case - £50 - £20 = £30 - halved - means a deduction in benefits of £15. Hope this makes sense

Now to inform the relevant authorities.....

nannytone_2

once universal credit comes in, the whole rent paid bu a lodger will be disregarded