Housing benefit

fed_up_and_stressed

Definately agree applying for discretionary housing benefit is the way forward in the short term -however this just a short term solution sadly.

LHA's are set by rent officers bsed on local avialable rents so hopefully there should be something coming up at or around this level.

StormyWeather_2

fed_up_and_stressed wrote: »

Definately agree applying for discretionary housing benefit is the way forward in the short term -however this just a short term solution sadly.

LHA's are set by rent officers bsed on local avialable rents so hopefully there should be something coming up at or around this level.

I thought it was based on all properties in the area, not just those that are vacant at that time.

fed_up_and_stressed

Sorry if i didn't make myself clear in my last post .. I've been gluging vino !

The rent officer determines broad rental market area this is defined in law as
The area must be one where a person could "reasonably be expected to live with having regard to facilities and services for the purposes of health, education, recreation, personal banking and shopping,taking account distance of travel,by public and private transport, to and from those facilities and services.

It must contain "residential properties of a variety of types" held on a "variety of tenancies". It must contain "sufficient privately rented premises" to ensure the rent officers figures are representative of the rents that a landlord might reasonably be expected to obtain in that way (the areas are usually defined by reference to postcodes).

rachel19_2

I think I will try for the discretionary payment, worth a try.
I was working when I first moved here 10 years ago, but if I remember I was still getting a small amount of help from housing benefit as my income was low and childcare was a lot of money.
Its only since I was made redundant a few years ago that they started paying the full amount for me.
Im still trying to get a job and get back to work, but at the age of 40 I feel like im being pushed back by all the younger generation, its a tough world out there now.

pmlindyloo

BigAunty wrote: »

I'm with Caz3121 - only those over 35 who are single who choose to live in shared accommodation who could have got the 1 bedroom rate get the lower sum of LHA.

As far as I know, for other types of household, they get the rate for x amount of bedrooms and can live where they please cost-wise (rent that is higher than their LHA entitlement they pay for themselves but rent that is lower gets capped at the rental sum) but it would be nice to have that confirmed definatively. This is my understanding for non-shared rate.

The maximum amount of benefit you can get will be the lower of either:

• your local housing allowance rate or,

• the amount of rent you are charged

Having had a play around with the benefit calculator it confirms this.

So OP could get a one bed place with rent more than the LHA for one bed but because she is 'entitled' to the 2 bed rate she could get the rent paid as long as it was no more than the 2 bed LHA.

A roomy one bed seems a real possibility.

Blindsided_2

Would it not be possible to move to a cheaper area. My landlord put my rent up by £50 a month. It was £620 for a 2 bed with no garden ( we were near train station ) I moved 6 miles away and now have a four bed with a huge garden for the £590.
It's not always convienant to move, but discretionary housing payments are short term and can't be relied on

Morglin

Caz3121 wrote: »

How is that actually worded? There are plenty people say with 2 children in 3 bedroom properties that get the 2 bedroom rate due to the age/sex of the children. Does your council actually pay the 3 bedroom rate if that is what they are in? And single people under 35 in a two bedroom property, surely they would not get the 2 bedroom rate!

I thought the only exception to the LHA being dictated by the bedroom calculator was where someone that would be entitled to the one-bedroom rate, decided to live in shared accommodation at which point they would only get the shared accommodation rate

It says if you rent a one bed you will get x a week
If you rent a 2 bed you will get x a week

It is a bit ambiguous because it also seems to suggest you cannot rent bigger than you need, but nothing about smaller than you need.

But as the OP is going to try the DHP route, it's not relevant now anyway.

Lin