benefit cap and all the tory crap help

DrGr

i have 5 kids 7 the eldest, i used to work security until i had a bad incident and triggered off my bipolar now im not allowed to work,
im on ESA
we moved hosue as they told us we could claim more get a house more suited to the size family,
(4month ago)

now were told we have to pay the full £650 rent a month,

we got descresionary payments, £330

but the house has no seals on windows leaking roof it blows somuch rising damp the lot i cant keep it warm in 4-5 month my kids been ill 3 times now,

and there threatening me with eviction over £300 now, from this month, even tho ive told them in 3 weeks my PIP claim goes through then housing benefit wil be reinstated,


just want to knwo where i stand with it all

Indie_Kid

Have you spoke to whoever owns the house regarding the lack of seals on the window, etc?

DrGr

i cant afford to make any rent payments its all gone on keeping house warm and food etc...

am i allowd to move my brother inlaw in?? hes allowed to claim £250 a month and atm hes dossing with mates , i thaught i wasnt alowed to have any 1 els in the house, but with the cap.... would this help?? i didnt knwo if it would make us worse off or if he would be included on the cap although hes not in my relationship

DrGr

i have yes , they said they need the £300 to do it.... ive been reporting this since 6 week check im now on 5months,

they keep screaming ''we cant fix without''

the landlord i know is in debt he wasnt to sell this house as it is and clear his debt, but hes askign toomuch we have had over 20 peopel look aroudn and invade our home (its in auction) no 1 wants it so were stuck

jacques_chirac

Does your partner not work?

BigAunty

The Shelter website will tell you your rights and how to get repairs done.

Rising damp is very rare - do you mean that your house is damp and suffers from condensation and mould? Some properties suffer from this due to maintenance issues, such as leaks, and this is the responsibility of the landlord. However, many properties suffer from it due to tenant lifestyle, their failure to adequately heat and ventilate the property, by drying wet laundry indoors, not opening windows for steamy showers and cooking, and this is the responsibility of the tenant. Read this to understand the causes and how to remedy it.

http://www.landlordzone.co.uk/pdf/Mould.pdf

Double check your benefit entitlements on the Turn2us online benefit calculator.

What is your actual rent and what is your HB entitlement? Your local council website will indicate how many bedrooms your household size is entitled to and what the maximum Local Housing Allowance rate is.

You mention £330 discretionary housing payment so does this mean you've moved into a property whose rent is £650 when your full HB entitlement is only around half of this or is there an adult in the house with employment income, for example?

Who told you would have to pay the rent in full - was this verbally or in writing? Who told you your HB will only be reinstated when you have applied for PIP? HB is based on household income and can be applied for independently.

Rent arrears are a serious issue - from a debt management perspective, the expert advice is always to treat things like Rent as a priority bill to pay because of the impact that comes from non-payment of it - homelessness.

Landlords will generally always serve eviction notices on tenants who don't pay the rent, regardless of the reason for non-payment, as it demonstrates that the tenant is risky and can't manage their money and will get into arrears again and again. See the Shelter website to understand the eviction process and your rights.

DrGr

the outside fromt he floor is all alge around the front, and inside form the carpet to aroudn 2 foot up the wall its growing i wash it alot and it comes str8 back,

windows have no seals since day 1 the house was in a state when we moved in, no doors etc told us to do it,

a survayer had a look for a potencial buyer and said rising damp was there,

the roof started to turnin the loft bedroom too, went in and the whole membrane is wet

windows have nos eals , most are foggy isnide too, its liek a hurricane at night ive sheets on windows towels alogn the bottoms its stupid thermostats on 24 and it wotn go above 21,

ive spent agis getting slabs layed in the garden cause it was a swamp .

its killing me,
my partner is fulltime mum and carer for me, im not allowed to be unsupervised with kids full time, its sad but i stuggle with day to day things , so nope she doesnt work either,

i was incharge of lidle stores security i got shashed up bad the guy was sent down i got compo at the time, but it sent me crazy, and due to constant stress and struggle from everything and not knowing what chemicals are doign what in my brain or knowing how i am goign to be day to day is scary for me , this stuff is sending me suisidal thaughts, my partner is my backbone she keeps me going,

but were goign to be homless at the end of the month unless i can sort some money out,


ive checked the rent thing there, it basicly says i gota pay the rent, not alowed to withold it, but i dont have it, i tryed explaining all my moneys goign on gas if they fixed it i coudl let them have it but if i give them if my kdis are goign to suffer.... i cant win

im using £10 - 20 a day on gas its outragous! the pipes howl all night like the q.e.2 boat it sucks and im stuck....

if my brotherinalw is alowed to mvoe in with us we coudl claim £250 rent off him ? can i do this ? or wil i suffer somwhere els? i cant see a way out :S

Nada666

You must have an income of well over nineteen hundred pounds per month. Paying £650 rent still leaves over £1200. No reason why you cannot feed, clothe and heat a family of six easily on that amount. You admit yourself even now you are only paying £300 on heating over winter - not an unusual sum for a large or poorly insulated property. If you switch to paying by direct debit you can spread the heating over the whole year.

You need to sort out your budgeting - there is nothing wrong with your income (unless there are things you have not told us.)

Caz3121

DrGr wrote: »

now were told we have to pay the full £650 rent a month,

The benefit cap is £500 per week, if you are not getting any help with your rent is this because your other benefits add up to £500 per week?

BigAunty

DrGr wrote: »

ive checked the rent thing there, it basicly says i gota pay the rent, not alowed to withold it, but i dont have it, i tryed explaining all my moneys goign on gas if they fixed it i coudl let them have it but if i give them if my kdis are goign to suffer.... i cant win

im using £10 - 20 a day on gas its outragous! the pipes howl all night like the q.e.2 boat it sucks and im stuck....

if my brotherinalw is alowed to mvoe in with us we coudl claim £250 rent off him ? can i do this ? or wil i suffer somwhere els? i cant see a way out :S

Yes, you are stuck between a rock and hardplace because you must pay the rent and can't but I re-iterate that rent arrears often result in the tenant being served notice, however they are caused.

Hopefully, a poster can identify a budgeting loan or crisis loan you can apply for that may cover rent arrears, not sure.

Have you reported these repairs in writing to the landlord (or their agent?). Make sure you keep copies.

Are you in a fixed term contract? If so, how long is it, when does it end and does it have a break clause in it? Are you in Scotland or England/Wales? How long have you been in the property? Without this info, we won't be able to give you the right advice.

If you have read the Shelter website, you will understand that sadly, poor landlords will often serve notice on the tenants rather than attend to their maintenance responsibilities. However, tenants in hazardous/unsafe properties can report the property to the environmental health department so they can inspect it and compel the landlord to undertake repairs. It still doesn't protect them from eviction.

Ask on the energy and Old Style boards how to insulate your property on the cheap and reduce consumption.

As for your brother becoming an occupant, what does your tenancy agreement say about this? There's often a clause that forbids anything other than occasional guests and compels the tenant to ask permission from the landlord for other people to move in.

You can model the financial impact of him moving into the property, check if his income affects any of your benefits, by entering this scenario into the Turn2us online benefit checker. I don't know whether or not he would be classed as a non-dependent and his income taken into account for your benefits, reducing your HB and CT discount, for example. Other posters will know.

jacques_chirac

Nada666 wrote: »

You must have an income of well over nineteen hundred pounds per month. Paying £650 rent still leaves over £1200. No reason why you cannot feed, clothe and heat a family of six easily on that amount. You admit yourself even now you are only paying £300 on heating over winter - not an unusual sum for a large or poorly insulated property. If you switch to paying by direct debit you can spread the heating over the whole year.

You need to sort out your budgeting - there is nothing wrong with your income (unless there are things you have not told us.)

It sounds like the Debtfree Wannabe board would be more suitable for the OP so they can get help with budgeting.