This so called Bedroom Tax

lighting_up_the_chalice

nannytone wrote: »

it is a saction if theyre evicted because of it

How on earth do you draw that conclusion? If, for example, a tenant decides to spend their rent money on nights out and champagne, it's hardly a sanction, is it?

nannytone_2

lighting_up_the_chalice wrote: »

How on earth do you draw that conclusion? If, for example, a tenant decides to spend their rent money on nights out and champagne, it's hardly a sanction, is it?

i said people not paying their rent because they are too poor... not because they are spending their money on other things.
someone on JSA will have around £23 a week left for all food/cleaning/travel/t v licence/travel after paying rent, council tax and utilities. around £10 if they are under 25.
not quite the budget for extravagent living.

im not saying that everyone uses their benefits wisely, but expecting people to survive on that amount and keep on top of their rent is ridiculously difficult

Dunroamin

nannytone wrote: »

usually at least 13 weeks. living on £54 a week for that period wont be easy (£14 rent + £4 council tax)

That's what I said, not for very long.

lighting_up_the_chalice

nannytone wrote: »

i said people not paying their rent because they are too poor... not because they are spending their money on other things.
someone on JSA will have around £23 a week left for all food/cleaning/travel/t v licence/travel after paying rent, council tax and utilities. around £10 if they are under 25.
not quite the budget for extravagent living.

im not saying that everyone uses their benefits wisely, but expecting people to survive on that amount and keep on top of their rent is ridiculously difficult

No-one said it was easy. Frankly, it shouldn't be. But that's NOT the same as a sanction.

KxMx

Dunroamin wrote: »

That's the assessment rate of ESA which most people aren't on for long.

Very true, but 13 weeks is the target for assessment rate ESA, and i'm not sure how successful that is in practice. A higher rate does not kick in on week 14 day 1.

It is also the rate of someone appealing a "fit for work" decision which can take 6-24 months to resolve.

seven-day-weekend

claire2k wrote: »

I was just sat here wondering how it is allowed that a council who allocated me a 3 bedroomed house 25 years ago when there was just me, my husband and one child can now start to charge for an extra room. I dont claim benefits because we both work full time and pay full rent but this Bedroom Tax does really bug me and i do worry that as we both get older and perhaps have to claim benefits are we going to have to move from what has been our family home for so long. The council gave me the house in the first place with just 1 child, it was technically too big for us then so how can they decide in the future it is too big. :mad:
xx

Because the rules have changed. Think yourself lucky to have had secure rented housing for 25 years. Most people who rent don't have this luxury.

margaretclare

Yes, the rules have changed. As someone else has said, you were married with one child and could easily have gone on to have more children. This 'bedroom tax' is a complete misnomer, a rabble-rousing distortion of the true facts. I must admit, I heard and read so much shouting about 'bedroom tax, bedroom tax' and yet HMRC had not written to me with a tax demand, it took me some time to understand it. It is not a 'tax' at all.

I honestly can't see why you're so worked up about it. As you've made clear, you're not claiming any benefits and therefore it won't affect you at all. And when you get older? At present it is not affecting retired people at all, and maybe by then you'll feel like having less space and move to somewhere smaller and more manageable.

FBaby

This thread is the perfect exemple of the trap a society falls under when wanting to provide generous benefits on the principle that if people are given a chance of a reasonably comfortable lifestyle, they are more likely to contribute positively. The inevitable problem though is what is illustrated here. Instead of being appreciative for it and therefore being an incentive for doing more in return, people start taking it all for granted. They then want more for less and shout when they suddenly have to provide a bit more themselves in return when society requires it.

Such statement as

The council gave me the house in the first place

says it all

catkins

Morlock wrote: »

Do you have more information on which social housing provider this is? It is very unusual for social housing landlords to provide white goods and carpets.

My husband has worked for 3 different housing associations in London and they all put new carpet and fridges, washing machines etc into their properties. Often if a tenant moves out even if they have only lived there for a few months the next tenant gets all new items.

One property had all new quite expensive carpet and the new tenant decided she didn't like it so complained and my husband had the job of removing it and taking it to the tip! It had been down all of 2 weeks! He took it up and put it into our rented house which had no carpet. It carpeted our living room, dining room, stairs and landing. It is a very good quality (we could not have afforded to pay for it) and has been down for about 8 years and looks good as new.

I think people would be pretty horrified to hear what some of the tenants get and if they moan that the washing machine or whatever is not good enough they get an even better model. One of the reasons my husband changed his job was because he got sick of a lot of the tenants' attitudes. A central London flat or house at a ridiculously cheap rent and still they moaned about something.

catkins

nannytone wrote: »

i have never come acroos a social landlord that supplies carpets and whiye goods. in fact, if a previous tenant leave carpets/fitted wardrobes/additional kitchen cupboards, they are usually removed before a new tenant takes posession. so unless you can back up your claims, then i find it almost impossible to believe

You obviously don't know much about social housing then. As I said in my previous post it is common for London housing associations to supply carpets and white goods and if a new tenant moves in even if those items are only a few months old they are replaced. The properties are often redecorated too although they usually do not need it.