Can anyone tell me if we'd be entitled to anything we're not already receiving?

chazsucks

Thanks for all the info, will definitely look into whether he can get help with the mortgage with us living here.

OH can work weekends and often works saturdays if I am off, but because my course is a combination of uni/placement sometimes my shifts are different each week and can be nights, weekends etc - and sometimes I don't get a rota until a few days before which makes it really awkward for him trying to arrange work!

Thanks again

princessdon

http://www.nidirect.gov.uk/getting-help-to-make-your-mortgage-interest-payments



That link covers mortgage help on pension credits - called SMI (support for mortgage interest). The rate is capped so his rate could be higher, but worth a read and a phone call.

chazsucks

Thank you so much, will show him and give them a call tomorrow! x

Horseunderwater

chazsucks wrote: »

Hi there. I wanted this to be a short post but apprently I am incapable of typing anything out briefly so thank you so much if you manage to read through all this!

Some background info - I'm 23, partner is 28. We have a 2 year old and a 3 year old. We both used to work full time and rent privately but in 2011 I started a full time degree. Prior to this we came to an arrangement with my dad to move in with him as we could not afford to rent once I had left work and he was struggling with his mortgage so it seemed a good idea.

We moved in with my dad and pay £650 a month rent... we have a bedroom for me and OH and a bedroom our sons share. We share the living room, kitchen, dining room and bathroom with my dad. He has a bedroom and a small office/living room as his own space.

My dad is 76, he gets pension credit and the lowest rate of disability allowance as he is disabled.

My OH is self employed and works around 14 hours a week as he looks after the children when I am at uni or on placement (shift work) so has to fit it around that.

I have an NHS student bursary of £600 per month which I use to pay the rent and a student loan of just over £3,000 per year which I use to top up the rent every month and contribute towards utility bills etc etc

We are currently really struggling with outgoings - the monthly basics we pay are ok - £650 rent, £50 debt repayments, £70 car insurance, £30 petrol, £150 food, groceries etc. However the gas and electricity bills are too much for my dad to afford which I think is because our house is so drafty over winter we have the heating on a lot, as well as using our log fire. In the summer the gas bill is fine.

Anyway in August my dads mortgage is going up by quite a lot. I don't understand mortgages myself but he pays interest and the interest rate is going up as it's coming to the end of a fixed term (if that makes sense to anyone else). He doesn't know for sure yet but has been warned by santander that it will be estimated to raise from around £500 a month to over £900. So after august we will be paying him more rent as he just cannot afford that himself.

He's been talking to other banks about switching mortgage but they have said no due to his age. He has also inquired about me and my partner taking over the mortgage and him paying us rent instead but because I am a student with no regular earnings and I do not graduate for another 18 months they have said they cannot do this.

We claim child benefit for both children - so around £20 per week for eldest and £13 for youngest.

We claim child tax credit and get £434 every four weeks based on our income.

We are not entitled to local housing allowance as we live with my dad.

I've spoken to our local Citizens advice but all they could say was use a website called turn2us, which when I went to use it said it doesn't work with students.

I've been on the government and hmrc websites for the last couple of days trying to work out if there is anything we might be entitled to that we're not currently claiming and to be honest I can't see anything that we're eligible for.

The only thing that I thought we might be able to claim (but I'm not hopeful) is income support, so I've filled in the form and I'm going to send it off with documents tomorrow.

I feel really stupid but just looking at these websites and all the different benefits and who is entitled to what has really confused me and sometimes you can't see the wood through the trees, you know? So I was just wondering if anyone on here could offer any advice, with any of it, even if we aren't entitled to anything else.

Oh and I've also signed up to my local hospital as a bank HCA but nothing has come up yet.

Thank you so much if you've managed to read all this x

Santander might if your Dad asks nicely be prepared to let him keep this mortgage but at a lower interest rate, without any fees involved - especially if he has not missed any payments. Assuming he will be on their Stand variable rate of 4.74% - it is always worth asking them about it. They are prepared to do this for me when my FR deal ends in June.
Also does you Dad receive all the benefit he is entitled to, such as Pension credit?

anmarj

princessdon wrote: »

Guaranteed pension credit gives full entitlement to 100% of interest paid and full council tax. Pension credits are your point to ask (unless peeps on here who know more can help). It's your presence I am unsure of, but worth pursuing.

Without you (leave aside as I'm unsure) dad gets all interest paid and council tax.

it does not guarantee that he he will get full help with mortage, if he has remortage they will look at what the remortage was for and could cap the amount paid out, plus it is only at a set rate, if his interest is highter then he is not going to get full help, there could also be a non dependent disregard (not sure if getting lr of DLA might override that.)

FBaby

If he is paying £500 for his mortgage now, why is he expecting you to pay over £650 a month rent? That doesn't seem very fair. Surely half of the mortgage and bills would not amount to that? Why does your father went to keep paying for such a large property?

Why can't he sell, get a smaller mortgage for a smaller property (he might even then be able to repay the full mortgage), and you can get help with housing for your own place. I am assuming that you will soon graduate and be able to start working full-time, in which case, between your income, your partner's SE income and tax credits, you'd be ok?

mel48rose

Hi, when I was a student nurse I did agency work to fit around shifts, kids etc. Try an agency as you can be selective. Good luck it will be worth all the hard work in the end.

dibdabable

Hi, I don't have any more practical support than others have given, but just wanted to give you some moral support. I know things are tough for you at present but your foresight and determination to be studying and trying to improve your lot is really commendable.
I do know it's hard work, effectively working and learning, especially when you've got children and you and your other half have to effectively work when the other one is not working,but your job will be really worth while once you've finished. Sometimes it can seem like everything's a struggle but if you can achieve what you've set out to do, you will all benefit in the end.

So I wish you all the best and you may as well apply for the things above as you haven't really got anything to lose.Good Luck.

BigAunty

He's had the mortgage for nearly 20 years - what did he originally borrow, what does he owe now, has he been paying it off via a repayment or interest only basis and how many years left on the current mortgage term? These are really important questions to understand if you are racing against time for a solution.

We sometimes on MSE see elderly home owners who started with a tiny mortgage twenty plus years ago who bizarrely owe many times the sum now.

You should look at the advice on the Shelter website for struggling homeowners as they have information on how to prevent mortgage arrears and repossession. This includes government schemes whereby a social housing landlord buys the property and lets the former owner stay there as a tenant, as well as SMI, etc.

The problem with 'interest only' payments through SMI (or even arranged directly with the lender if they consent) is the capital never gets paid down - hundreds of pounds spent each month and not a penny less on the mortgage sum owed 5, 10, 15, 20 years down the line. Unless the mortgage borrower can return to employment, lenders are very averse to keep extending the mortgage term. There is a known ticking 'interest only' time bomb for the elderly who sleep walked into this product without having an investment vehicle to pay off the capital at the end of the term, who do not realise that the mortgage lenders won't give them any extra time.

On the housing forum, we come across situations where the lender refuses to extend the term giving the owner just a short period of time to sell the property or risk it being repossessed because they owe such significant sums of money, so far down their mortgage term, with absolutely no realistic chance of paying it off.

An option, albeit one that is likely to be unpopular with your dad, is to sell up. That's actually a valid option for homeowners who cannot afford their mortgage -those that cannot pay their mortgage should be in rental accommodation. Because of his age/disability, he may get awarded social housing so he's not homeless after the sale of the property but due to the pressures of supply/demand, and if he is left with a lump sum after selling, you need to be realistic about his chances, otherwise he will have to live in a private rental property and he will have his HB paid if/when his capital is low enough to qualify.

Also note that the government are reviewing SMI but I think this is just at the research stage - do keep an eye on this. I've come across policy papers that indicate they wish to reform it to prevent long-term dependency by benefit claimants who have no realistic chance of paying it off through employment. They see it as short term support for those who are temporarily not in employment - I've come across posters who have claimed it for 13 years and aim to buy a place outright due to property price inflation before the end of the mortgage term, all thanks to the tax payer. All other claimants, the govt feel, should sell up rather than depend on the state purse. They are even considering re-designing SMI as a loan by placing a charge against the property.

BigAunty

chazsucks wrote: »

...

My OH is self employed and works around 14 hours a week as he looks after the children when I am at uni or on placement (shift work) so has to fit it around that.

I have an NHS student bursary of £600 per month which I use to pay the rent and a student loan of just over £3,000 per year which I use to top up the rent every month and contribute towards utility bills etc etc

We are currently really struggling with outgoings - the monthly basics we pay are ok - £650 rent, £50 debt repayments, £70 car insurance, £30 petrol, £150 food, groceries etc.


We claim child benefit for both children - so around £20 per week for eldest and £13 for youngest.

We claim child tax credit and get £434 every four weeks based on our income.

You aren't entitled to any more benefits, except perhaps working tax credits when your partner works 24 hours per week, as far as I can tell. Other posters can tell you about the child care element of tax credits to free him up for more employment. Does your Uni offer child care/ nursery places? Does your Uni offer a hardship fund? Is your father well enough to child sit?

What you should actually be doing is checking your dad's entitlement. There is a handy checker on the Age UK website that will take into account his mortgage balance when calculating pension credit as they will give an idea of possible mortgage interest payments. When you use the turn2us online benefit calculator, you should do it from his perspective.

http://www.ageuk.org.uk/money-matters/claiming-benefits/pension-credit/

The Age UK site has information on how to get help with housing costs. Perhaps they have benefits advisors who can help with your complicated scenario?

You would benefit from downloading the MSE budget planner and entering in all household income and expenses as something is quite awry here.

Excluding your partner's income, you personally currently net £1463 per month in student loans, bursaries and benefits while the major outgoings that you list such as the rent, debts, car, groceries are £950, so you are clearly missing some major expenses, though as you don't have child care costs, its not clear what they are, apart from energy bills/telecoms, etc.

Assuming your partner earns at least the NMW from his self employment (approx £86 a week), as a rough guess, your monthly net income would be closer to £1840. That's £424 a week when your basic significant bills, according to the info you provide, account for £220 of this - you need to find out where the other approx £200 is going when all your major accommodation/travel costs have been met. If your partner can't even make the National Minimum Wage from his activities, perhaps he should wind up his business and get a regular job?

Your rent (does this include other household bills like energy?) is currently £150 week, just over a third of your net income, which is a high proportion and it looks like you are expecting it to rise to up to 50% of your take home pay which isn't a comfortable ratio.

However, with your dad getting a state pension of up to £107 per week, plus pension credit of up to £35 now, plus low rate DLA of £20, the household income could be around £586 per week. This will still make a mortgage payment of £900 per month from a household income of £2539 bearable with proper budgeting, if not a bit of a squeeze as it eats up just over a third of disposable income.

It should not be a squeeze now to have a mortgage payment of £500 from the above income if my figures are correct - that's just 20% of household income, the type of ratio many households dream of! Does your father have debts or something? What major expenses are you missing from your basic list?!