Universal credit when you own property

[FlamingoYellow]

I moved out of the family home just over 1 year ago after separating with my exH, who continued living in the house.
I live in a rented flat and our 2 dc live with me 5 days a week and exH 2 days a week. I started claiming UC when I moved out of the family home. When we sold the house a few weeks ago I updated UC that my savings now exceeded £16000 (the equity from the house). My UC has now been stopped and I have been asked to attend an appointment at the job centre to show proof of my savings.

I'm now panicking that the fact I owned property means I shouldn't have claimed UC after all and that they will ask me to pay it all back. I don't recall there being any questions about my owning property when I applied, which I thought was strange, but I was in an absolute state at the time with my marriage ending and finding somewhere to live, so I didnt question it further. I'm worried I filled in the forms wrong as I have ASD and I know I misunderstand forms at times, but I thought I had filled it in OK at the time.

I also thought, but maybe misunderstood this too, that my UC wouldn't end immediately but would continue for 6 months. The savings I have will be the deposit and solicitors fees for the house I am buying (completing in 3 months), so I can't really use that money to help with rent/bills and food. My rent is also being increased so I'm feeling very anxious about how I will afford to afford to live over the next 3 months.

I called the UC helpline but they weren't able to give me any advice. Does anyone have any experience or knowledge of this please?

Usually if you own a property and don't live in it, the property is counted as capital for UC purposes, meaning no UC if you're over the capital threshold.
There are some exceptions to this. One is if you have left the property due to a relationship break up. The capital is disregarded for 6 months.
Another is if you are taking steps to sell the property. Capital is disregarded for 6 months, and can be disregarded for longer if a UC decision maker decides you have taken all reasonable steps to sell the property, eg you weren't charging above market rate.

Then now you've sold the property - capital from the sale of a property can be disregarded for six months where you can show you are taking steps to use it to buy a new property.

Just discuss it all with your UC advisor. Not all of them are as up to speed as they should be so I'll try to find a link to the regs for you to reference.

Ah, babyroobs beat me to it!

If you're former partner lives in the property and is a lone parent then the six month limit doesn't apply. However, I believe - but am not absolutely certain - that this is if the former partner is the main carer, eg the one receiving child benefit.

*your

Thanks @GeordieRacer that's what I was wondering, but I can't see clarified anywhere.

From what I can see on the universal credits website they allow you to have the capital for 6 months If the relationship broke down and then 6 months once it’s sold. So if you’ve been claiming for a year or more you’ve been overpaid. I think they’ll ask for part of the money back for the other 6 months.

Don’t scare her. I’ve been paid it for over a year because I could demonstrate I was doing everything within my power to extract my equity (having to take stbxh through court to force sale) - these things can take time and the decision maker accepted my account of my situation.

I'm not sure about UC as it may be different but I own my house and get tax credits. Single parent.

I do not get any money towards housing, it's work and child tax credits only. Do you work?

I own a house that xh lives in, in the consent order he can stay there til our youngest is 18, so I was able to claim for the rented property I live in. Don't panic, it's all sortable!

I didn't take him to court or anything but it did take several months to get him to agree to sell the house as he was looking into options of where he was going to live (buying me out, buying somewhere new, renting) and what he could afford. We were also getting the divorce sorted at the time so the house came into discussions of how our finances were going to be divided up, etc and we had to agree on all that. The actual sale of the house only took 6 months though.

I work full time.

@lanbro does your ex claim child benefit or do you?

@FlamingoYellow I claim everything towards the children although we actually have them 50/50

Oh that's interesting. It might work out OK for me then.

I will try to get in contact with CAB today anyway for more advice.

UPDATE

just in case anyone else is in this situation and comes across this thread.
I had my appointment with the job centre and explained everything. They were very nice and reassuring. I showed them evidence of my savings and it went to a UC decision maker. Within a week they'd got back to me to say that I can continue to get UC for up to 6 months and then they will check in with me again and see what the situation is.

Hi
I've just come across your thread. I'm starting this situation now, and own a house but moving out with my DD to rent.
Will I only be able to claim UC for up to 6 months? Thanks

You won't be able to claim UC if you have assets ( your house) and the equity is more than 16k unless reasonable steps are being taken to sell it. They will disregard for 6 months to give you a chance to sell, maybe longer if it takes longer to sell, but wither way you need to declare it from the start.

I came to uc in may 2024 on the migration notice. I was living at parents not claiming housing element just standard and child. I have just a few days ago changed address to move to property I own. Joint mortgage. I have been naive and neglectful and not realised I had to put down a property I joint own that I don’t live in and seen it when changing details. Don’t receive any payment for it and pay the mortgage as person in there is on mortgage (friend). I know now that capital is 16000 how do they work this out? Do they go off the value of the house when it was bought for example 2022 to now? Also if I would have declared I would have been under the 12 month degradable transferable thing as I’m on that for my payment due to moving from tax credits. Would that still be considered to to cover that period of time? Or would they not allow that as I did not declare it at the start? I think I’m still in 12 month window or slightly over it as had first payment off uc the end of may I am going to own up to my mistake as I really did not know until I logged on to switch my address to the owned home. Also I only own a small percentage of it but have no prove of this so it would be deemed as owning half wouldn’t it? I just can’t believe I’ve been this neglectful and stupid. Also now that I am in the owned home would I still be eligible for the uc payments or would they now stop completely.