Housing benefit and LHA query

Chicken24

Hi, can someone confirm that I have understood this correctly when renting from a private landlord. I have two small children and so I would be assessed as needing two bedrooms total which gives a LHA of £109.32 per week in my area. As I understand it if my total rent is more than this I can top it up myself. However, I have been looking at a couple of three bedroom houses in my area - if I was to take a three bedroom house would I still receive the £109.32 per week and top it up myself i.e. there would be no financial penalty for having more than two bedrooms?
Also, I think that I may be claiming universal credit - are the rules still the same for this?

Indie_Kid

The bedroom tax / penalty for having more rooms than you need only applies for social housing.

10pence

Indie_Kid wrote: »

The bedroom tax / penalty for having more rooms than you need only applies for social housing.

Whereas the LHA is akin to the removal of the spare room subsidy aka bedroom tax. Don't recall so much as whisper in the press when Labour introduced that.

geminilady

Indie_Kid wrote: »

The bedroom tax / penalty for having more rooms than you need only applies for social housing.

So in social housing would you have to top up the LHA plus pay the bedroom tax if you were the only person in a two bed?

Indie_Kid

geminilady wrote: »

So in social housing would you have to top up the LHA plus pay the bedroom tax if you were the only person in a two bed?

Yes you do.

tomtontom

geminilady wrote: »

So in social housing would you have to top up the LHA plus pay the bedroom tax if you were the only person in a two bed?

In social housing the full amount of rent is "eligible" for assistance (subject to the under occupancy charge), whereas in the private market there is a maximum eligible amount (set at the 30th percentile of market rents). There is no top up as social housing is not subject to LHA rates.

geminilady

tomtontom wrote: »

In social housing the full amount of rent is "eligible" for assistance (subject to the under occupancy charge), whereas in the private market there is a maximum eligible amount (set at the 30th percentile of market rents). There is no top up as social housing is not subject to LHA rates.

Am confused now so in social housing you would just have to pay bedroom tax if single in a two bed and out of work? the other poster said both

tomtontom

geminilady wrote: »

Am confused now so in social housing you would just have to pay bedroom tax if single in a two bed and out of work? the other poster said both

Yes, that's correct. In social housing you would be eligible for full rent minus the bedroom tax. In a private rental you would be eligible for the LHA rate (which is generally less than the rent amount).

eadieb

You dont actually pay a tax in social housing. it just means that if you are deemed to have a spare room then they knock off either 14% or 25% of your usual rent paid. so if in social housing you pay £100 per week for a 3 bed but are deemed to only need one bed, then you will have £25 docked off your rent. there is no cap on the social housing rent.

private rents - rent allowance - is a pre ordained set figure for the number of people in your household, by the local council. and it doesnt matter how many rooms you have more than you need, you still only get the set figure (unless your rent is less than that amount)

stevemLS

eadieb wrote: »

You dont actually pay a tax in social housing. it just means that if you are deemed to have a spare room then they knock off either 14% or 25% of your usual rent paid. so if in social housing you pay £100 per week for a 3 bed but are deemed to only need one bed, then you will have £25 docked off your rent. there is no cap on the social housing rent.

private rents - rent allowance - is a pre ordained set figure for the number of people in your household, by the local council. and it doesnt matter how many rooms you have more than you need, you still only get the set figure (unless your rent is less than that amount)

I think you meant benefit, not rent.

10pence

geminilady wrote: »

So in social housing would you have to top up the LHA plus pay the bedroom tax if you were the only person in a two bed?

Indie_Kid wrote: »

Yes you do.

Wrong.

geminilady wrote: »

Am confused now so in social housing you would just have to pay bedroom tax if single in a two bed and out of work? the other poster said both

The other poster was wrong.

It helps if people stop calling it 'bedroom tax' when it isn't even a tax, it is the removal of the spare room subsidy. This is for social rented property only, which are generally cheaper than private rented properties anyway. The following example is from Shelter:

The amount of rent you can claim housing benefit for is reduced by:

• 14% if you have one 'spare' bedroom
• 25% if you have two or more 'spare' bedrooms

For example, if you have one 'spare' bedroom and your rent is £100 per week, only £86 counts when your housing benefit is assessed. You have to pay at least £14 yourself.
If you have two or more 'spare' bedrooms and your rent is £100 per week, only £75 counts when your housing benefit is assessed. You have to pay at least £25 yourself.

In the above example , the 'bedroom tax' for one room is £14. Or to put it correctly, the tenant is liable to pay £14 rent. Before the removal of the spare room allowance that £14 was paid by taxpayers.

The Local Housing Allowance (LHA), introduced by Labour in 2008, is for private rented property only. Each council sets it's own LHA rates and it's based on the number of rooms required; a person under 35 get shared room rate, single adult gets 1 room rate and so on.
In private rented property there is nothing stopping a tenant living with spare rooms but they will only ever get the LHA rate for their circumstance.