Housing Association House - What happens when I retire?

chrisyboy

Hello Everyone


I currently live in a Housing Association house under an affordable rent scheme and pay full rent on the property. I have worked since I left school for the past 13 years. I have always aspired to 'own' my own home however after many obstacles in my past and various problems I have never been able to save up enough to secure a deposit. I put away what I can each month however I think its time to be realistic, I am never going to be able to save up enough! Unfortunately I am not in a position where I have family members to help me out, I am pretty much on my own with this therefore if I cant do it myself I never will! Taking all this into account I would say that at the moment I am working to 'survive'. What I wanted to know what when I retire I take it I will still have to pay my rent and if its still the same rate, I wont be able to afford to do this, I have a work pension but it wont cover the rent. Does anyone have any experience with this, will I be able to claim some sort of housing benefit?


Many thanks


Chris

00ec25

whilst it is always very good to plan ahead I think you are unnecessarily scaring yourself. If you left school 13 years ago then you still have at least 40 years until you hit (state) retirement age by which time the benefits rules could be vastly different to what they are today

FWIW under the current benefit rules pensioners with low incomes will get pension credits and will get council tax benefit plus housing benefit. But in 40 years time who knows

spend the next 40 years improving your employment prospects so you have a better pension pot rather than worrying about how you will claim benefits that may by then no longer exist

leveller2911

Hi Chris, It may depend on the type of tenancy you have but generally speaking when you retire you can apply for housing benefit and Council tax benefit. Depening on your income level from you pension they will decide whether or not you qualify for HB and CTB. You may have all your rent paid or you may have to pay some or even all of your rent. It all depends on your income and savings at the time you retire.

Just read 00ec25 post and agree fully.

chrisyboy

thanks for the replies. I am 32 now so yes do have a long time left employed however I try to put away everything I can however year after year still not massive improvement. I work hard however don't really seem to progress at work, I am lucky to have a steady job but I am scared of working all my life and not having anything to show for it and I really don't want to struggle when I retire. I will have to look at renewing my CV for a better paid job as I do feel I am underpaid for the hours I put in and for the stress of the job I do.

thequant

leveller2911 wrote: »

Hi Chris, It may depend on the type of tenancy you have but generally speaking when you retire you can apply for housing benefit and Council tax benefit. Depening on your income level from you pension they will decide whether or not you qualify for HB and CTB. You may have all your rent paid or you may have to pay some or even all of your rent. It all depends on your income and savings at the time you retire.

Just read 00ec25 post and agree fully.

But don't forget your HB will be reduced by bedroom tax for any spare rooms you have.

ska_lover

Hi there, does your property have the right to buy? might be a way of affording to own

chrisyboy

ska_lover wrote: »

Hi there, does your property have the right to buy? might be a way of affording to own

Unfortunately not as I live in what they call a 'Rural Village'. Seems silly as its a life long tenancy. I don't know if this will every change but knowing me it wont. I really don't want to come across as selfish as I am far from it, just want my own house, I work really hard and worried about my future and finances. Also my rent is actually higher than a lot of mortgages therefore I know I can afford a mortgage I just cant save a bigger enough deposit up to get one, probably a lot of people are in the same boat!

HB58

Do you have a personal pension? The sooner you start contributing, the longer the money has to accumulate before you retire.

thequant

chrisyboy wrote: »

Also my rent is actually higher than a lot of mortgages therefore I know I can afford a mortgage I just cant save a bigger enough deposit up to get one, probably a lot of people are in the same boat!

There use to be a mortgage provider that use to accommodate people like yourself who couldn't save for a deposit but could afford a mortgage.


They were called Northern Rock, and what happened to them ? yeah lots of people who supposedly could pay their mortgage didn't. As their was no deposits put down for these properties, tax payers like myself had to pick up the bill.

cattie

Stop & take stock. Home owning does not catapult you into nirvana as many seem to think it does. If you have a financial cushion, then yes it is great & beats renting hands down.

However, those without a financial cushion & very little disposal income can find it a chain around the neck. There is always something to go wrong in a property & it needs constant maintenance. This costs money & can often run into thousands of pounds.

Pufft! your boiler conks out & it's £3k for a new one, Crash! some tiles come down off of your roof in a storm or the flashing fails, more money to payout, Glug! your drains get blocked, £150 to have cleared.

Whilst you are renting, all these concerns are your landlords.

With home ownership you need to have buildings insurance, & very important is insurance in case you become unemployed or too ill to work. With rental property, you can claim housing benefit if necessary in such cases but home owners will only qualify for help with the interest part of their mortgage & not the repayment part & get absolutely no help for the first 13 weeks anyway.

Also, at the moment interest rates are very low, but this won't last forever. I well remember the days of 13% interest rates on a mortgage! So many people found themselves in big trouble financially.

You are only young now, you don't know what the future holds for you. There are many people who didn't realise their dream of homeownership until they were over 40. And on the flip side, there are many who did realise their dream at a much younger age, but ended up being repossessed because they got in over their heads.

carefullycautious

You say you are in a house, if this is the case could you take in a lodger to increase your savings?

Could you exchange with a local authority property which you would be able to buy ( I know this riles a lot of people but it is still allowed)

You are still young what about if you wish to marry/civil ceremony/co habitat. All these factors need to be taken into account.

Also remember that a lot of people sit in their owned home in later life and are unable to afford the maintainence unless they have good pensions and safety net savings, not a very nice existence.

Just make sure take everything into consideration before committing.
You are not a failure because you do not own a property.

Good luck for the future