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Is it ok to buy the flat you live in with an inheritance and continue claiming benefits

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  • [Deleted User]
    [Deleted User] Posts: 0 Newbie
    500 Posts Third Anniversary Photogenic Name Dropper
    I would be minded to pay the inheritance into a pension. Pension not taken into account for UC calculation and would also benefit from some tax relief.
  • calcotti
    calcotti Posts: 15,696 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper
    edited 13 August 2025 at 9:00AM
    [Deleted User] said:
    I would be minded to pay the inheritance into a pension. Pension not taken into account for UC calculation and would also benefit from some tax relief.
    Unless OP is working they cannot, as I understand it, pay more than £2880 (£3600 gross) into a pension in a single year.
    Information I post is for England unless otherwise stated. Some rules may be different in other parts of UK.
  • Grumpy_chap
    Grumpy_chap Posts: 20,950 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    edited 13 August 2025 at 9:00AM
    calcotti said:
    [Deleted User] said:
    I would be minded to pay the inheritance into a pension. Pension not taken into account for UC calculation and would also benefit from some tax relief.
    Unless OP is working they cannot, as I understand it, pay more than £2880 (£3600 gross) into a pension in a single year.
    If the OP is working, AIUI, pension contributions are limited to 100% of salary (gross).
  • calcotti
    calcotti Posts: 15,696 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper
    edited 13 August 2025 at 9:00AM
    Grumpy_chap said:
    calcotti said:
    [Deleted User] said:
    I would be minded to pay the inheritance into a pension. Pension not taken into account for UC calculation and would also benefit from some tax relief.
    Unless OP is working they cannot, as I understand it, pay more than £2880 (£3600 gross) into a pension in a single year.
    If the OP is working, AIUI, pension contributions are limited to 100% of salary (gross).
    I was guessing that OP who is on benefits with mental health difficulties was likely not to be in work (or only have limited work).
    Information I post is for England unless otherwise stated. Some rules may be different in other parts of UK.
  • LateNightHunter
    LateNightHunter Posts: 40 Forumite
    10 Posts First Anniversary Name Dropper Photogenic
    AFIAK, as soon as the inheritance hits, he'll lose his benefits until his holdings/savings drop below £10k I think?
    "Let me tell you something you already know. The world ain't all sunshine and rainbows. It's a very mean and nasty place and I don't care how tough you are it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain't about how hard ya hit. It's about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward. That's how winning is done!"
  • calcotti
    calcotti Posts: 15,696 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper
    LateNightHunter said:
    AFIAK, as soon as the inheritance hits, he'll lose his benefits until his holdings/savings drop below £10k I think?
    That’s not correct. £16,000 not £10,000 and PIP is not affected and there is a narrow possibility of UC not being affected - all as already described in this thread.
    Information I post is for England unless otherwise stated. Some rules may be different in other parts of UK.
  • LateNightHunter
    LateNightHunter Posts: 40 Forumite
    10 Posts First Anniversary Name Dropper Photogenic
    calcotti said:
    LateNightHunter said:
    AFIAK, as soon as the inheritance hits, he'll lose his benefits until his holdings/savings drop below £10k I think?
    That’s not correct. £16,000 not £10,000 and PIP is not affected and there is a narrow possibility of UC not being affected - all as already described in this thread.
    Entirely fair! I just remember my UC being stopped because I got £15k in a claim last year, is all
    "Let me tell you something you already know. The world ain't all sunshine and rainbows. It's a very mean and nasty place and I don't care how tough you are it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain't about how hard ya hit. It's about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward. That's how winning is done!"
  • Alice_Holt
    Alice_Holt Posts: 6,094 Forumite
    Ninth Anniversary 1,000 Posts Name Dropper
    LateNightHunter said:
    calcotti said:
    LateNightHunter said:
    AFIAK, as soon as the inheritance hits, he'll lose his benefits until his holdings/savings drop below £10k I think?
    That’s not correct. £16,000 not £10,000 and PIP is not affected and there is a narrow possibility of UC not being affected - all as already described in this thread.
    Entirely fair! I just remember my UC being stopped because I got £15k in a claim last year, is all
            The savings limit is £16k not £15k as calcotti has said.

       If your total capital / savings are now under £16k, have you reapplied for UC (if entitled) ?  
    I would recommend that you make yourself aware of the details of UC (such as capital limits), if you are claiming / or can claim it.
    Alice Holt Forest situated some 4 miles south of Farnham forms the most northerly gateway to the South Downs National Park.
  • TELLIT01
    TELLIT01 Posts: 18,650 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper PPI Party Pooper
    sammyjammy said:
    TELLIT01 said:
    If the price to the claimant is £100k, where is he finding the additional £67k? 

    I would certainly advise getting independant advice on whether or not owning the property would be in his best interest.  As things stand, with an inheritance of £32k he will only be £16k above the limit for claiming UC again.  £16k will be swallowed up very quickly with normal living costs in probably little more than a year to 18 months.  I don't dispute that it is possible to run a property only from benefit payments but it's likely to lead to a hand-to-mouth existence.
    My gut feeling is that he would be better off remaining as a council tenant and therefore avoiding the costs involved in the upkeep of a property.
    The assumption being made is that the total value is 100k without the discout

    Which hasn't been clarified by the OP.  Irrespective of the actual cost, the advice remains the same
  • newlywed
    newlywed Posts: 8,260 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Photogenic Name Dropper
    edited 21 April 2022 at 9:42AM
    What about paying solicitor costs for the purchase though?
    it’s not just the property price.
    Newlywed at the point I joined the forum... now newly separated
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