Bedroom Tax

bestpud

Ravenshade wrote: »

Take a look at the tenancy agreement, you can usually knock walls through no problem. Depends on the wall but generally you can knock it through. If it's a support wall you're going to need to leave a column or two.

Most of the time you don't even have to let them know.

Private Rented =/= Social Housing Rented.

Make sure to offer to put it back whien/if you leave.

We have to inform them of anything that affects the building itself.

We can attach things to interior walls, within reason, but would have to ask to knock any through.

We asked about putting a fence between our existing fence and the house, to enclose the back garden, and they said we'd need permission because we'd have to attach it to the brick work.

But then, we should ask permission for things like satellite dishes and I don't know anyone who does that.

sunnyone

evenasus wrote: »

I agree with the benefit reduction for people living in a house with more bedrooms than required. But not sure about the dining room being classed as a bedroom.

My house has 4 bedrooms & 2 bathrooms upstairs.

Downstairs I have a lounge, a dining room, a kitchen, a utility room & a cloakroom.
The dining room is used only at Christmas, as my kitchen has a table & chairs in it.

I wouldn't consider calling the dining room a bedroom.

My house is the same as yours apart from us having an extra bedroom, I am severely disabled and we bought this house as it can be used several ways to suit my worsening disabilities, if I cant manage with a stairlift anymore it can accomadate a through the floor life in the dining room or I can change the dining room to a down stairs bedroom and convert the downstair cloakroom into a wet room and use the conservatory as a dining room.

My dining room is a waste really as it only gets used for high days and holidays because we have a large table and chairs in the kitchen but I like the idea of having one regardless of how often it is used.

306chris

Dunroamin wrote: »

If the property is designated as 3 bedrooms on the tenancy, to include a downstairs bedroom (even if used as a dining room), then knocking down a wall will make no difference. Otherwise you could knock down a wall between 2 upstairs bedrooms to avoid paying extra, which you certainly can't do.

I live in a row of houses all have the same floorplan except some are two bed (2 large bedrooms) and mine with is 3 bed. I have already asked about knocking the wall through (I have the skills to do it myself) and have been told I can but the property would still be classed as a three bed so I wouldn't gain anything from doing so.

Kind of sucks as my neighbour who has one of the 2 beds can put up a partition have the same number of bedrooms as me and still be classed as a two bed thus avoiding the benefit reductuion/tax.