Need advice on Renting and Possible Help to Rent (Housing Benefit?)

PianoManUK

all my gigs require me to be on the road by lunchtime on Friday

i`d never make it to the gigs

19lottie82

Fair enough. Your choice of doing Friday gigs that require you to be on the road at lunchtime, results in the opportunity cost of earning respectable wage, coming off benefits, and being able to move into your own flat.

As I said, your choice. But look at it this way, are you unable to re jig your musical commitments (as I'm sure you can continue in the industry by doing so) even if it means still living at home with your alcoholic mother and sister, when you are 50? What is more important to you?

PianoManUK

your not getting are you?

i have 2 jobs!!!

i cannot work full time because i play in a quite successful band
which means i HAVE to do gigs on a Friday and leave by lunchtime, which no employer is willing to do to give me Fridays off or half days

i don't live in Thame! that's 33 miles from my home
which is a round trip of 66 miles a day and £20 in petrol per day

i am going round in circles on here arent i??

how do i delete this Thread?

19lottie82

A successful band that doesn't pay enough for you to move out of your mums house at the age of 40?

The Thame job was merely an example. There must be plenty of similar jobs out there, but you choose not to take them. Instead you look for the tax payer to subsidise your current earnings with tax credit and potentially pay your rent.

Why should millions of others work in fll time jobs they have no real interest in, in order to pay taxes, and in turn, pay your bills, as well as their own, just because you choose not to undertake work that will adequately support yourself?

I'm one of those people and I don't think that's really fair.

PianoManUK

and i have paid tax and NI since age 17!

19lottie82

Ok my opinions aside about what you choose to do with your work and benefit claims.........

I do know what I am talking about in terms of you funding and acquiring your own place. And the information i provided was correct. If you can prove otherwise, please let me know and I will apologise.

Yes, you keep repeating that you have made music for 14 years, but its obviously not earning you a living wage, if you have to claim tax credits, as a single person, is it?

You may not like the information I have provided you with, but there's really no need to resort to personal insults.

Good night.

PS I forgot one other possible solution. You could move out of your parents house and declare yourself homeless. The council, may, I repeat may, house you but at first this is most likely to be in a B&B or shelter, most likely sharing with un desirables such as those just out of prison, or drug users. If you can stick is out long enough then the may offer you a social housing property. But then again they would view you as "intentionally homeless" so may not be under any obligation to house you.

[Deleted User]

Sometimes you get to do what you love, sometimes you're lucky enough to get to do what you love and get paid for it and sometimes you don't have the opportunity to do what you love.

If you want to do something and it doesn't pay your bills (rent is a bill) then you have to make sacrifices elsewhere to give yourself the opportunity. For you that sacrifice means living with your family, or using a house share, because right now you cannot afford to live alone AND also get to do what you love.

Your choice is simple, do you spend a significant portion of your time touring with your band for pay that doesn't support you or do you get your own place? You can't have both. You're asking to spend your time on a hobby and have the tax payer subsidise that, is that fair on everyone that sacrifices their hobbies because they can't afford to do it?

Your story has changed multiple times throughout this topic (first you were 31, now you're 39, you didn't have a job now you do). Please can you lay it all out, explain every detail of your situation. How much money have you earned in the last 12 months? The money from your music, is that paid through a company (PAYE?) or are you self employed filing a tax return every year? If everyone knows what you earn and how it's earned they can provide you information, right now nobody really knows what situation you're in... depending on what you earn and the hours you work you may be eligible for tax credits for example.

People want to help you (that's why they're replying) but without information they can't.

armour

Lottie, you've been giving this bloke good advice and he's been very rude in return.
OP, you seem to have a sense of entitlement. Just why do you think the state should subsidise your chosen lifestyle?

grifferz

Do not expect to be as rude as this and still get useful, free advice.

If your chosen job does not pay you enough for the lifestyle you want, and prevents you from getting another job that would pay enough for it then you need to make some compromise.

If your band is as popular as you say then you should do it full time or perhaps spend the rest of the week in another band. If the reality is that music can't pay your bills then you need to give priority to your other skills that can.

As a skilled musician and lorry driver you have two useful avenues of generating income, so it is hardly surprising that people are shocked that instead you wish to use benefits to support a lifestyle that can't support itself. Many people are less fortunate than you, have no useful skills and no choice in the matter, and they are always going to get priority.

It would be great if everyone could just work 2 days a week doing something they love and 2 days a week doing something that pays the bills, then still have the tax payer top up their income to the level where renting a one bedroom property is achievable. But the reality is that for many, those 4 days of work don't add up to enough income. Very few people are lucky enough to even have 2 days a week doing what they love. If others have to compromise then why can't you?

You have come here asking how to get everything you want with no alteration to your lifestyle. There's no need to become abusive when this unsurprisingly leads to answers you don't like. If you do continue to be abusive all that will happen is that people will be abusive back.

Better_Days

Lot of patience shown on this thread especially by 19lottie82.

OP could you boost your income by giving private music lessons or music lessons in schools? I suspect you would probably have to be CRB checked if you work with children, but your local schools may well like the kudos of having a successful musician working with their children.