how to become a joint tenant

donnajunkie

dolce_vita wrote: »

I understand that you feel you have a right to remain in the house but tThe thing is, where does it end?

What about when letters, benefits etc start to be sent to the house.

What will you do then?

Will you be tempted to impersonate your mother and pretend she is still alive?

You would be on a very slippery slope then.

well all post to do with the house from the council is addressed to both of them. i wouldnt actually be dishonest as such i would just let them continue in their ignorance which they have been in since they chose not to take my dads word for it when he told them that she had died. we dont try to claim anything in her name. we dont put her on any forms that we fill in for them. it is pure incompetence on their part. afterall when we have claimed housing benefit one of the requirements is to put on the form everyone that lives in the house and we never put her down and yet they still must have her as a joint tenant otherwise why would they send post adressed mr and mrs.

dolce_vita

But when your father dies, will you continue to do the same if it meant keeping the house?

donnajunkie

moneysavinmonkey wrote: »

can't say i really understand your perspective. Until recently I had lived in my parents house since I was about 4 or 5 but I don't believe I have some kind of entitlement to live there forever because of this. Regardless of my opinion, you say you have a low income and therefore have a 'need' for subsidised housing, it would obviously be preferable for you to remain in your dad's house.

I think best to speak to you council about it. If you need/want more advice before you speak to them then call shelter. Don't pretend your mother is still alive - you'll probably end up getting you and your dad kicked out your house.

i dont have any kind of arrogance in my view. it is simple when you live somewhere for 33 years then in spirit(maybe theres a better word) it is your home. to lose it would hurt and of course on top of that i dont want to live somewhere horrible. i always bottle pout fdearing the worst when i am near their office. i think i may try thta bit harder to walk in and ask tomorrow.

does anyone have a basic idea on the benefit situation. would it make a difference generally if i was a joint tenant rather than second adult?

donnajunkie

dolce_vita wrote: »

But when your father dies, will you continue to do the same if it meant keeping the house?

ultimately i dont know. hopefully i wont have to. then again even if i get what i want my mother will still be on there coz we still wont have given them the death certificate and i guess it could get more complicated coz my dad would probably still be on there without me supplying a death certificate. i will ask if the rules have changed about needing to give a death certificate.
the policy is so ridiculous. imagine if when my dad dies i chose to leave at the same time. after a few months they would be chasing a woman who has been dead for more than 20 years for unpaid rent.

Engelbert

You cannot get round the law by not telling the council about your mother's death - when one surviving tennat remains and where that tenant was a former joint tenant, he or she is deemed to be a successor (Housing Act 1985 s.88) On the death of the sole survivor there is no statutory succession to the tenancy. It ceases to be secure and can be terminated by the landlord giving NTQ.

So you MAY get away with it but how would you claim HB on a property you have no claim on if anything happened to your father? If and when the council finds out you have no legal claim on the property and would likely be evicted. if you are eligible why not join the councils waiting list?

Do get advice though - rather than taking advice from a forum

Oh and of course the council need a death certifictae to take some-one off the tenancy. Its not unheard of for some-one to maliciously claim that some-one has died. Every-one would need a death certificate to carry out their proceedure - you surely provided it to close any bank accounts etc - how is the council different? - your attuitude seems a little strange!

silvercar

donnajunkie wrote: »

ultimately i dont know. hopefully i wont have to. then again even if i get what i want my mother will still be on there coz we still wont have given them the death certificate and i guess it could get more complicated coz my dad would probably still be on there without me supplying a death certificate. i will ask if the rules have changed about needing to give a death certificate.
the policy is so ridiculous. imagine if when my dad dies i chose to leave at the same time. after a few months they would be chasing a woman who has been dead for more than 20 years for unpaid rent.

You could hardly claim that your Mum succeeds the tenancy when she died in 1985. I suppose you are hoping that you could succeed the tennacy by removing both names at the same time.

If they ended up chasing a woman who has been dead for 20 years for unpaid rent, it would be your own fault for not informing them of her passing in the correct manner.

If your dad needed care, they would need to assess whether they could regain the house, but according to their records your mum would still be there!

Presumably you managed to close any bank or savings accounts your mum had? In the same way you need to correct the tenancy.

It is obvious to everyone that you need to provide proof that your mother has died to the council and correct their records. Your just deluding yourself if you think otherwise. If everyone thought like you, how many empty properties would there be, supposedly occupied by the ghosts of people long gone.

moneysavinmonkey

donnajunkie wrote: »

i dont have any kind of arrogance in my view. it is simple when you live somewhere for 33 years then in spirit(maybe theres a better word) it is your home. to lose it would hurt and of course on top of that i dont want to live somewhere horrible.

I don't doubt that it would be upsetting to leave the home you were brought up in and obviously no-one wants to live somewhere horrible but the council does not have to take this into consideration. There is a very limited supply of social housing in this country and so it is necessary to apportionate this out to people based on their need rather than sentimental values. It does seem harsh in your situation perhaps but it is only the councils duty to house you adequately.

Ultimately it is up to you, can you not boost your income so you can live somewhere nice?