Urgent Help

A_Couple_In_Love

Hi,

Would like some advice please regarding housing benefits.

I live with my mum and partner at the moment, we are both aged 22. My mum is moving in with her boyfriend next month. We are both currently claiming JSA as we are currently unemployed and get £222.90 total as a couple rate every 2 weeks.

As soon as april comes, we will have no where to live, and we are really worried that we could be homeless?

Are we entitled to housing benefits, I believe you are allowed up to £80 paid towards your rent?

Any advice is really appreciated.

Thanks,
A_Couple_In_Love.

paddedjohn

As a couple you wil be entitled to the 1bed rate in your area. Can you not stay where you are when your Mum leaves?

A_Couple_In_Love

We currently live in a 3 bedroom rented house, paying £500 pcm. So it would be too expensive to claim house benefits.

We have seen a 2 bedroom rented house, charging £100 PW, if the housing benefits pay £80 towards your rent, could we pay the remaining £20 PW?

paddedjohn

If the LHA for your area is £80 then you would have to make the rest up yourself. You can check how much the LHA is by glint on your councils website.

Caz3121

You may find that running your own home on benefits is tight and you should look at how much council tax you would be required to pay (different councils are introducing different rates from April as council tax benefit is changing) average amount for gas/elect, food etc and you may find that £40 per fortnight from your benefits is too much to lose

A_Couple_In_Love

Thanks for the replies, we was hoping to get somewhere for £100 as the housing benefits pay £80. We will only be putting an extra £10 towards it as a family relative will be helping out with the other £10PW.

Do the housing benefits give you any allowance for council tax?

meerustar

As you are looking for somewhere, you might as well try for a one bedroom as the HB and CT are getting reduced. You will struggle like hell on JSA paying for a 2 bed. Even £10pw loss is massive when no one in the house is working.

welshmoneylover

Perhaps by then both of you may have jobs so you may not need to worry about claiming benefits.

skibadee

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.php?p=56730269&postcount=1

I think your going to have to swallow your pride!!!!

JulieElizabeth

Your full-time jobs didn't last long

asdf1982

did you both get made redundant? remember redundancy money may affect your benefits (depends how much you've got in savings)

you should be able to get council tax benefit but dont think it will be for the full amount