Inheritance affecting ESA?

if someone inherits a property (that they intend living in so will not provide an income) are they still able to claim ESA as they’d still be unable to work and financially no better off?
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Comments

  • When would they start to live in property?
    It's only income based ESA (or any income add ons to contribution based) that inheritance could affect.

    Let's Be Careful Out There
  • NaomiR
    NaomiR Posts: 9 Forumite
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    They’re living in the property now, renting (private rent with housing benefit) how do we know if it’s income based ESA?
  • Keep_pedalling
    Keep_pedalling Posts: 20,426 Forumite
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    NaomiR said:
    They’re living in the property now, renting (private rent with housing benefit) how do we know if it’s income based ESA?
    HB should cease as they should no longer be paying rent.
  • The DWP doesn't make it clear in their letters, the amount can be of guidance or their tax records.
    Normally HB isn't paid to family members so they might look into why the property was inherited.
    Let's Be Careful Out There
  • NaomiR
    NaomiR Posts: 9 Forumite
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    no you’ve misunderstood they’re renting now from family member but stand to inherit property under family members will, they obviously won’t claim housing benefit as there will be no rent 

    my question about ESA remains, we understand how housing benefit works 
  • Spoonie_Turtle
    Spoonie_Turtle Posts: 10,135 Forumite
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    NaomiR said:
    no you’ve misunderstood they’re renting now from family member but stand to inherit property under family members will, they obviously won’t claim housing benefit as there will be no rent 

    my question about ESA remains, we understand how housing benefit works 
    Nothing will change for the ESA. 

    It would only be if they inherited a property that they didn't live in, that capital would be an issue for any means-tested ESA.  Which is not the case here.
  • TELLIT01
    TELLIT01 Posts: 17,866 Forumite
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    The alarm bell that rings for me is that they were previously renting the property from a family member.  Unless they were paying the full market rent and had a proper rental agreement etc, there may be questions about their actual entitlement to HB in the first place.
  • poppy12345
    poppy12345 Posts: 18,878 Forumite
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    Were housing benefit aware that they were renting from a family member?
  • HillStreetBlues
    HillStreetBlues Posts: 5,801 Forumite
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    edited 11 March 2024 at 5:57PM
    NaomiR said:
    no you’ve misunderstood they’re renting now from family member but stand to inherit property under family members will, they obviously won’t claim housing benefit as there will be no rent 

    House benefit should only be paid if it's based on a commercial agreement. So if the rent doesn't get paid the landlord would evict them for non-payment, just like any other tenant.
    So the council might look to recover HB as they could say it would have been unlikely to be evicted from a property that would be  inherited, so classed as a contrived tenancy.
    Let's Be Careful Out There
  • NaomiR
    NaomiR Posts: 9 Forumite
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    Renting from a close relative is permissible provided relative doesn’t live in the same property, rent is due as per lease agreement which is submitted to DWP to apply for Housing Benefit.  Rent covers current mortgage which would be paid up on death of owner so current HB claim is indeed valid and going directly to landlord/relative with shortfall (HB does not cover full rental amount)
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