Bedroom Tax

Witch_Hazel

luckboby wrote: »

the property has 2 bedrooms upstairs and bathroom down stairs is the kitchen living room and dining room she has recieved a letter from the Council that because she has a 3 bedroom property and only two people living in it she has to pay 14% towards the housing benefit from April 2013. It is stated in the tenancy agreement that the property is a 3 bedroom and the dinning room down stairs is classed as a bedroom
Boby

How strange?
I have 3 bedrooms and a bathroom upstairs, downstairs I have a living room, kitchen and dining room. Mine is classed as a 3 bed house, of course if I wanted to I could use the dining room as a fourth bedroom, but the tenancy is still classed as a 3 bed house.

seven-day-weekend

Absolutely Dunroamin, this was what I was trying to get across, that it is not written in stone that just because a room has a table and chairs in it, that it has to be used as a dining room for evermore, if it is a self-contained room it could equally be used as a bedroom even though the house might be classed as having 2/3 bedrooms - it could be an 'emergency' bedroom if needs must.

So, for example, if someone wanted to keep a room spare so that children/grandchildren could visit, but could not afford to pay the extra rent, and they have a self-contained dining room, they could rent the bedroom or dining room out to a lodger, whose rent would more than cover the extra, and keep the other one spare for whatever purpose they desired. After October 2013 they will be allowed to keep any rent from a lodger and not have it counted in the means-test.

For example my son has a two-bedroomed flat and uses the larger bedroom as a games room, but he has said if he or his girlfriend lost their job, they could always let one of the rooms to a lodger to help pay the mortgage.

nannytone_2

where i lived years ago there were 'parlour type' houses.
they either had 2 or 3 bedrooms upstairs, plus a seceond reception'dining room downstairs.
the tenancy stated them all to be either 2/3 bedrooms or 3/4 bedrooms

evenasus

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.

nannytone_2

but if you have one adult and one child living in a 2 bed house with a dining room .... they have a 'spare roo' regardless of what title you put on it.
should they be unaffected while the woman over the road who has no dining room is?

gayleanne

This is now part of the new under occupancy tax (bedroom tax) if you read through it, the government are now stating that if you have a dining room, that is a separate room to the kitchen it will be classed as a bedroom. Us commoners are not allowed to have dining rooms, we have to make do with a plate on our lap in front of the TV. I am starting to get worried, about when they are going to decide that we have to be taxed on the garage and garden shed.

nannytone_2

even if the tenancy says 2 bedrooms?

gayleanne

nannytone wrote: »

even if the tenancy says 2 bedrooms?

Yes even then, if the tenancy states 2 bedrooms, 1 dining room 1 living room, the dining room will be classed as a bedroom, as long as it is a separate room from the kitchen and living area, it is absolutely stupid but this is the way it is being done.

Witch_Hazel

gayleanne wrote: »

This is now part of the new under occupancy tax (bedroom tax) if you read through it, the government are now stating that if you have a dining room, that is a separate room to the kitchen it will be classed as a bedroom. Us commoners are not allowed to have dining rooms, we have to make do with a plate on our lap in front of the TV. I am starting to get worried, about when they are going to decide that we have to be taxed on the garage and garden shed.

Have you a quick link to this that I am able to read, please.Certainly would be interesting to see how this will pan out if as I have said already my tenancy agreement states I have a 3 bed house, so not sure how they can then turn round and say I have a 4 bed house because I have a dining room.

nannytone_2

theres an awful lot of people that dont realise that!

they are saying that their tenancy says 2 beds...so it is only 2 beds!
just gets better and better doesnt it.

personally i have never had a dining room, nor a kitchen big enough for a tanle.
so it;s always been a case of a folding table and pushing the furniture out of the way if anyone came to eat