HELP Need some Benefits & Housing Advice

E13JT

poppy12345 wrote: »

As advised above, give shelter a ring and they'll advise you on the best way forward. See link for how to contact them.

Ames wrote: »

If your sister applies for HB she'll have to move to UC, which could mean her losing money.

Poppy, I did try to access Shelters advice phone line but according to the website they dont take phone queries for housing advice, they only speak to you if you're about to be made homeless. They refer you to the online chat for all other advice. I would prefer to speak with someone rather than chat online.

Ames, My sisters on ESA & DLA and struggles already, will they cut her ESA as she was on Income Support before but they moved her on to ESA after she was assessed, Will she loose her ESA? The job-centre feel she isn't suitable for work with her condition and haven't been able to find her work. She has to attend support groups where they end up talking to me instead of her as she doesn't always understanding them.

poppy12345

As you're in a full UC area then if she applies for HB then it will have to be UC. If she does this then her ESA will stop and it will be transferred to UC. Any premiums she receives on ESA won't be paid on UC and it's also a monthly payment, unlike ESA which is fortnightly. With a 6 week wait for payments to start too.

Her DLA won't be affected as that's not part of UC, however she'll soon be asked to apply for PIP because DLA no longer exists.

An online chat with shelter is much better than nothing. This is complicated because it's social housing and you have to be very careful about who takes on the tenancy agreement, as others have said.

Afraid_of_Kittens

1) If sister is tenant and is on DLA care then there is no non dep deduction from her Housing Benefit for a working brother.

2) Downside is if she dies early then brother loses home.

3) If brother is on tenancy then no Housing Benefit as income is too high.

The choice is a possible short term gain by having sisters HB pay the rent with no non dep deductions or have a secure tenancy for life.

Once you are a social/council tenant you should have security of tenure for life. If you put your sister as a tenant and she dies you are out on your ear and could wait years or decades to get back into social/council housing.

The choice is yours - a short term gain or security of tenure for the rest of your life.

tboo

E13JT wrote: »

Hope I can get some help,
I used to live with my family but my mum recently passed away. We live in rented accomodation and she was on HB.
I now have to apply for the tenancy to be transferred to either me or my sister. If I transfer it to me i wont be able to afford the rent or qualify for HB because I work, My sister who cant work due to her learning disability may get HB.
The landlord is suggesting due to her reduced life expectancy it should be transferred to me . If I follow their advice and take over the tenancy could my sister will qualify for HB for the rent, or will she only get part of it,
I tried asking the CAB for advice but they were asking me to get legal advice.

But if you take on the tenancy then you ask your sister to contribute to the bills

E13JT

Afraid_of_Kittens wrote: »

1) If sister is tenant and is on DLA care then there is no non dep deduction from her Housing Benefit for a working brother.

2) Downside is if she dies early then brother loses home.

3) If brother is on tenancy then no Housing Benefit as income is too high.

The choice is a possible short term gain by having sisters HB pay the rent with no non dep deductions or have a secure tenancy for life.

Once you are a social/council tenant you should have security of tenure for life. If you put your sister as a tenant and she dies you are out on your ear and could wait years or decades to get back into social/council housing.

The choice is yours - a short term gain or security of tenure for the rest of your life.

Thanks for everyone's help, I don’t feel so alone. My sister doesn't seem to understand the complexities and I've felt so alone these past few weeks.

If my sister does take on the tenancy will she be able to transfer it to me at a later date? I’m assuming she won’t be able to as she has inherited the tenancy.

If I take on the tenancy will my wife be able to take over it if something happens to me. As morbid as it sounds I didn’t think I’d loose my mum suddenly so need to think of my kids, I’ve got quite a few health concerns. I tried asking the landlord a little while ago but they referred me to the CAB again, who asked me to seek legal advice.

poppy12345

Who ever takes on the tenancy it won't be able to be transferred to anyone else after that.

pmlindyloo

Why do you feel that you would be unable to afford the rent if you took on the tenancy? Social housing properties usually have much lower rents than private accommodation.

Is this because with the death of your mother you are liable for the bedroom tax? Who is currently living in the house? How many bedrooms? Have you checked to see if you are entitled to any housing benefit? You mention your wife so am presuming that she lives with you? And your children?

If your sister took on the tenancy in her name then it is correct that there would be no non dependent deductions taken from her housing benefit if she is receiving
DLA with the care component so obviously this is the cheaper (for you) option.

But there is the risk that if your sister died before you then you would have no right to stay in the house as succession has passed once already.

BUT this is not written in stone. There is a degree of flexibility to this. Some councils may allow you to take on the tenancy if you have been living there for a considerable number of years, it has always been your family home, you are not under occupying, you are on a low income and would find getting private accommodation difficult, have young children.

That is why CAB and the landlord have told you to take legal advice. Each case would be looked at on an individual basis and you would need legal help to appeal any decision that meant you had to move out. It is not a straightforward situation.

In the end the council will make the decision for you if you cannot decide whether it is you or your sister who takes on the tenancy.

Ditto with your wife and children if they live with you and you were named on the tenancy agreement and you died. Your wife, children and sister may all be allowed to stay on.

But, please answer the questions about your personal circumstances and your financial circumstances so we have a better idea of the full picture. I am trying to understand why you cannot afford the rent if you work full time.

Ames

Does your sister have the capacity to sign a legal agreement (the tenancy)? Would she understand the full implications to her ESA, and all her legal responsibilities? Would she be able to deal with the council when it comes to repairs and annual checks? If she claims Universal Credit she'd be getting the housing element paid to her, does she have enough financial understanding to make sure she pays the rent every month? If you want her to take the tenancy it's actually a big thing you're asking her to do, especially since she'll be taking a financial hit on her ESA. As said above, you'll be able to ask her to contribute to the rent from her other benefits even if you're the tenant.

I think you need to do the online chat with Shelter - that way you'll have a record of what was said that you can refer back to. They should be able to advise you how to go about finding the right legal advice.

I also think you should go back to CAB and get a benefit check for the various scenarios - both for your sister's finances should she become the tenant, and yours to see if you could claim some housing benefit.

It might also be worth posting on the Debt Free Wannabe board on here, it's not just for people in debt. You might be able to organise your finances so that you can afford the rent. After all, if your sister passes away before you, or goes into a home, you'll have to pay rent and you'd quite possibly be looking at having to rent privately.

E13JT

pmlindyloo wrote: »

Why do you feel that you would be unable to afford the rent if you took on the tenancy? Social housing properties usually have much lower rents than private accommodation.

Is this because with the death of your mother you are liable for the bedroom tax? Who is currently living in the house? How many bedrooms? Have you checked to see if you are entitled to any housing benefit? You mention your wife so am presuming that she lives with you? And your children?

If your sister took on the tenancy in her name then it is correct that there would be no non dependent deductions taken from her housing benefit if she is receiving
DLA with the care component so obviously this is the cheaper (for you) option.

But there is the risk that if your sister died before you then you would have no right to stay in the house as succession has passed once already.

BUT this is not written in stone. There is a degree of flexibility to this. Some councils may allow you to take on the tenancy if you have been living there for a considerable number of years, it has always been your family home, you are not under occupying, you are on a low income and would find getting private accommodation difficult, have young children.

That is why CAB and the landlord have told you to take legal advice. Each case would be looked at on an individual basis and you would need legal help to appeal any decision that meant you had to move out. It is not a straightforward situation.

In the end the council will make the decision for you if you cannot decide whether it is you or your sister who takes on the tenancy.

Ditto with your wife and children if they live with you and you were named on the tenancy agreement and you died. Your wife, children and sister may all be allowed to stay on.

But, please answer the questions about your personal circumstances and your financial circumstances so we have a better idea of the full picture. I am trying to understand why you cannot afford the rent if you work full time.

I won’t be able to afford the accommodation because even though the rent is considerably lower I am on minimum wage because of my ill health. I had to take a pay cut after my heart attack and because I have been in and out of hospital. My wife doesn’t work with our two small children and caring for my mum who was bed bound and my sister..

I don’t qualify for housing benefit as we checked last year when we were considering moving out due to the overcrowding. If I was to go part time I will qualify however my employer won’t allow it I’ve already asked. It’s not because of the bedroom Tax because we were already overcrowded before as there were 6 of us in a pokey 3 bedroom. Now there are 5 of us in a 3 bedroom.

We struggle with all the bills with the three of us, now without my mum it will only get tougher.

pmlindyloo

E13JT wrote: »

I won’t be able to afford the accommodation because even though the rent is considerably lower I am on minimum wage because of my ill health. I had to take a pay cut after my heart attack and because I have been in and out of hospital. My wife doesn’t work with our two small children and caring for my mum who was bed bound and my sister..

I don’t qualify for housing benefit as we checked last year when we were considering moving out due to the overcrowding. If I was to go part time I will qualify however my employer won’t allow it I’ve already asked. It’s not because of the bedroom Tax because we were already overcrowded before as there were 6 of us in a pokey 3 bedroom. Now there are 5 of us in a 3 bedroom.

We struggle with all the bills with the three of us, now without my mum it will only get tougher.

Thank you for your answers.

Is your wife receiving carer's allowance for your sister?

Are you receiving working and child tax credits?

Have you done a benefits check? Use this - https://www.turn2us.org.uk.

Perhaps you need some budgeting/financial advice? Is your sister paying towards the rent/her keep? Have you got debts?