Can't afford rent anymore

Vectis

It would be interesting to know what your outgoings are if you're struggling as a family on £31k plus tax credits.

There are presumably things you can cut back on?

Guest101

tbs624 wrote: »

Most ASTs will contain a clause specifically prohibiting the subletting of any part of the property.

Not necessarily the same thing.

And the ll would only possibly be able to issue a s8, there's no penalty

Mickygg

You have £31k combined income. After tax that's say £27k. Excluding credits etc, after rent you have about £1,500 each month for all of you. Cut back on your spending, move to a smaller property, find another job....

dancingfairy

Your mum in particular should seek help from a free debt charity such as National Debtline, StepChange or your local CAB. You all should prioritise paying the rent as opposed to paying credit card bills, unsecured loans etc. You may have to make payment arrangements with your creditors.
df

lighting_up_the_chalice

Guest101 wrote: »

4: the council may rehouse you, but u need to be evicted first

Not so. The council may offer priority on their list for affordability and may even consider it homelessness if the property would be "unreasonable to continue to occupy" for reasons of cost. With many councils trying to prevent homelessness rather than deal with the (expensive) fall-out of not doing so, eviction is no longer an absolute requirement. Merely the threat of homelessness should attract an appropriate reaction.

There is also the option of Discretionary Housing Benefit, accessed via the council. This is a discretionary fund which may be used to address affordability issues for a short term to give you the opportunity to permanently resolve the situation without falling into unrecoverable debt.

However, with the income detailed, I think budgeting advice may be more appropriate.

lighting_up_the_chalice

phill99 wrote: »

You getting a council house I'd unlikely. Even if you were to be evicted the council would put you into another private rented place. Council houses are a scarce commodity in the UK now.

That depends on the local demand. Bedroom Tax has, in many areas, greatly reduced demand for larger homes while increasing supply. In some parts of the country, larger family homes are proving difficult to let.