AIBU to hate the line "why should people on housing benefit live in homes that working people can't afford?"

[standupandbecounted]

"Why should people on housing benefit live in houses that working people could not afford?"

I keep seeing this line being thrown about in the media. Along with stories about families, usually with an average of eight kids, claiming a shocking level of housing benefit.The government is going to cap housing benefit to prevent this. Reasonable, but not the whole story.
A a less publicised proposal is to drop the level of Local Housing Allowance(LHA) from the 50th centile to the 30th centile.Local housing allowance is currently set at the median-middle value- of private rents in your local area. In my area the LHA is nowhere near the proposed cap. The maximum I can claim for a 2 bedroom property (I have 2 kids) is 126.92 per week. For a three bedroom it is £150 per week. Shelter have estimate that the average loss for a for a two bedroom tenant in my area will be £12 per week.( I assume this is based on predicted rent levels)
Loss per area here

I am renting a two bedroom flat for myself and two children, aged 18 months and 5. There is no outdoor space, it is not large and not in an exclusive area. The soundproofing is poor and the tenants upstairs are fond of partying way into the early hours. Hardly luxury housing that working people can't afford. I believe this myth about HB claimants living in the best properties does not represent the reality for the majority of us. I have tried to find somewhere better but most landlords will not take HB or children. I have put my name down on the waiting list for council housing but have been awarded thr lowest priority level. I will never get one with that banding.

The thing that upsets me most is the "working people" bit, a lot of HB claimants ARE working people! Housing benefit is also available to people who don't earn enough to cover their rent. Most low income people cannot access council housing anymore. They are forced to rent on the private market, where rents are to high to be affordable on low incomes. This is the case in most areas, not just London.

So, AIBU to feel angry that people on housing benefit are being misrepresented and subjected to unfair cuts?

Pmsl

"fucking hell, is it 'obnoxious week' on here at the moment"

Only when you can get as many "fucks" into that post as you did!

posie, it's not selfish to be down about your misfortune, when there are others less fortunate/dying, last christmas with children/starving with dirty water in Africa. I'm so sorry to hear about these bad things that have happened to you.

The trouble is the coalition and media encouraging people to think others have it easier than them by such misleading phrases as the OP quoted as hating, about housing benefit/working people can't afford to live it up like that etc. Also encouraging people to find someone else to blame, be it assylum seekers, single mothers, working poor who should "try harder", or whoever.

There is a newish newspaper out called "i". It is tabloid size, (doesn't make your arms ache and get in a mess like big ones) ,only 20p and much more informative than Daily Mail. Not saying you read Daily Mail posie, just recommending newspaper while I am on here.

oh thesecondcoming I love you everybody seemed to ignore my unemployment up link earlier...I wonder why?

Aloise, I personally find blaming the poor for being poor, far more offensive than a few swearwords.

stuckinthemiddle Who is blaming the poor for being poor?

The tories.

Merry fucking christmas thesecondcoming I know exactly how you feel

Merry Fucking christmas the second coming.
Sorry to hear what you are going through.

PMSL at your first post. Quote of the week.

And the lib dem leadership are blaming the poor for being poor as well as the tories. So are a lot of the media.

True a1b2. Politics of hate.

Very true a1b2, you'd think that the entire recession was caused by the waynetta slobs of the world. Sad.

Riven Yes, more than detailed enough thank you! Gosh, I had no idea - and yes if your mortage/take home is that ratio then I can see why you are hard up and I sympathise. It's just that from many things you have said on here I put two and two together and made 10 by assuming you lived on benefits - which, frankly, no-one would begrudge or query under the circumstances. I think because whenever there is a thread about benefit dependency you are always there like a shot talking about DD and your illness and lack of funds so I assumed! Apologies.

Haven't had a chance to read the rest of thread yet - looks like it's kicked off though!

Cuts map from shelter
england.shelter.org.uk/what_you_can_do/campaign_with_us/housing_benefit_campaign/uk_affordability_map

Getting back to the original topic.

falseeconomy.org.uk/cure/what-do-the-experts-say

The link to what the secondcoming was talking about.

That makes far too much sense Standup, nobody will ever believe it!

I'm a proper commoner! Comprehensive school, Essex born & bred!