JSA and mortgage interest

fiveyearplan

My husband and I have recently started claiming JSA. My husband has been a house-husband for number of years and I was the only one working. I lost my job in March so signed on April this year.

I was told we had to make a joint claim and it is a contributions based JSA that we get. We were told we would get help with the mortgage interest after 13 weeks. I just received the forms to fill in. In the meantime I have been told by a former colleague (who btw has found herself in the same predicament!) and she is under the impression that only income based JSA is eligible for mortgage interest help. Can someone please clarify for me?

Also, while I was just looking online I saw on CAB website that if you are over 60 you get the mortgage interest help immediately without having to wait 13 weeks. My husband is 60, are we eligible to claim from the date of our claim or do we have to wait 13 weeks?

Thanks if you have read this far! I really appreciate any help!

jacques_chirac

You need to have an underlying entitlement to IB JSA. Assuming you do not have capital over £16,000 or any other household income, you will qualify.

The reference to over 60's is misleading, it is for those in receipt of Pension Credit. Your husband has a good few years yet until he will qualify.

pmlindyloo

jacques_chirac wrote: »

You need to have an underlying entitlement to IB JSA. Assuming you do not have capital over £16,000 or any other household income, you will qualify.

The reference to over 60's is misleading, it is for those in receipt of Pension Credit. Your husband has a good few years yet until he will qualify.

Yes, GovUK and Shelter confirm that you need to be over 60 and in receipt of Pension Credit.

https://www.gov.uk/support-for-mortgage-interest/what-youll-get

I think Adviceguide is wrong not just misleading Very naughty - might be 'on their case' tomorrow!

fiveyearplan

Great, thanks both. Jacques Chirac - by capital over £16,000 you don't mean equity in the property do you? We would have an underlying entitlement to IB JSA.

the over 60 would have just been a bonus! I'll happily settle for the 13 weeks.

jacques_chirac

No, any equity in your home is not counted

sleepless_saver

jacques_chirac wrote: »

The reference to over 60's is misleading, it is for those in receipt of Pension Credit. Your husband has a good few years yet until he will qualify.

Not so many years, he would qualify for pension credit when he reaches the state pension age for a woman that age. https://www.gov.uk/calculate-state-pension. So just a couple of years.

If you are unemployed when he reaches that age, you are likely to be better of if he claims pension credit rather than you claiming JSA because the pension credit rates are higher than JSA.

But, just to complicate things, if universal credit has been rolled out in your area by then he would have to claim that instead of pension credit if you would still be below state pension age at that point. Age UK do a useful factsheet on pension credit which explains all this.

tokenfield

I do hope the OP does not have a mortgage with Barclays or the Woolwich. They are the world's worst in not returning the MI12's to the DWP. In one case I am aware of a total of 5 MI12's were sent to the bank over a period of 17 months. Not one was replied to. It took the DWP to send the bank a letter asking for the reason why they had not been returned. A reply came back from the bank with the info by return!!!!

lld01

tokenfield wrote: »

I do hope the OP does not have a mortgage with Barclays or the Woolwich. They are the world's worst in not returning the MI12's to the DWP. In one case I am aware of a total of 5 MI12's were sent to the bank over a period of 17 months. Not one was replied to. It took the DWP to send the bank a letter asking for the reason why they had not been returned. A reply came back from the bank with the info by return!!!!

Never had a problem with Barclays/Woolwich in the dept I work in, I would say they are one of the quickest to respond to MI12s.

2-3 weeks is the normal timescale for a lender to respond.

OP, to avoid delays with incorrect info don't let your local branch fill the MI12 in, make sure they send it off to their mortgage head office (or post if yourself to the address on your mortgage statement).

tokenfield

lld01 wrote: »

Never had a problem with Barclays/Woolwich in the dept I work in, I would say they are one of the quickest to respond to MI12s.

2-3 weeks is the normal timescale for a lender to respond.

OP, to avoid delays with incorrect info don't let your local branch fill the MI12 in, make sure they send it off to their mortgage head office (or post if yourself to the address on your mortgage statement).

Well unfortunately I will have to disagree with you.

The information and case I quoted came about after I asked if anybody else had had problems with Woolwich/Barclays as I am having similar problems.
Guaranteed Pension Credit was awarded to me on the 9th May 2013, backdated to the 8th March 2013. A MI12 was sent to the Woolwich on the 21st March 2013. After speaking with the Pension Service on the 6th June 2013, I was informed that it had not been returned to them. They sent me another MI12 which arrived on the 10th June 2013 and was posted to the Woolwich on the same day.
I spoke once again with the Pension Service on the 12th July only to be told that neither forms had still not been received.
I was told to wait another 4 weeks! A telephone call will be made in mid August to see what is happening.

So far I have added £1905 to my credit card balance after making the past 5 months of repayments.

GwylimT

I was on JSA quite a few years ago, as others as said as long as you don't have assets over £16K you'll be fine. Despite what others say, my then mortgage was with Barclays and they returned my MI12 within two weeks and as I wasn't on a fixed rate at that point they offered to negotiate one with me.

lld01

tokenfield wrote: »

Well unfortunately I will have to disagree with you.

The information and case I quoted came about after I asked if anybody else had had problems with Woolwich/Barclays as I am having similar problems.
Guaranteed Pension Credit was awarded to me on the 9th May 2013, backdated to the 8th March 2013. A MI12 was sent to the Woolwich on the 21st March 2013. After speaking with the Pension Service on the 6th June 2013, I was informed that it had not been returned to them. They sent me another MI12 which arrived on the 10th June 2013 and was posted to the Woolwich on the same day.
I spoke once again with the Pension Service on the 12th July only to be told that neither forms had still not been received.
I was told to wait another 4 weeks! A telephone call will be made in mid August to see what is happening.

So far I have added £1905 to my credit card balance after making the past 5 months of repayments.

Advisors will normally set a 4-week reminder for the return of the form , the majority are returned within this time.

It might sound obvoius but make sure the name & NI number of the Pension Credit claimant is on the front of the MI12. Very often the mortgage is in a partner/spouses name - if the partner's details are in the front of the form it can result in it being linked up to the wrong account.

You can phone Woolwich to ask if they've receieved / sent the form.