How does Housing benefit work?

[grandmashotdoodlebugs]

I may be unreasonable for not knowing ! So I am sorry if I am...

So my question is a single man who is on benefits. What and how is housing benefit paid that would enable him to live in a one bedroom accommodation costing a monthly rent of £750?

I need a lesson and if I come across as judgmental then yes, I am being unreasonable.

Housing benefit was replaced by universal credit with a housing element I think

A single person of 35 yoa or older is entitled to full housing benefit for a one-bed flat if

1. they are on another means tested benefit (ESA, JSA, income support or pension credit), and

2. they started their HB claim before Universal Credit was rolled out in their area

The maximum amount of HB they can get is the local housing allowance (LHA) for their area, which is the average of the bottom 30% of rents in that area. There are plenty of areas, especially in the SE, where it is £750pcm or more for a 1-bed flat.

The LHA applies to the housing costs element of UC as well.

If they're working, the same principle applies but the amount they get depends on how much they earn, but the maximum is still the LHA.

which is the average of the bottom 30% of rents in that area. There are plenty of areas, especially in the SE, where it is £750pcm or more for a 1-bed flat.

It's no longer even the bottom 30% in some areas. Housing benefits have been frozen for several years (despite rents going up...).

Market rents are often a lot higher than housing benefit rates. Hence the growing homelessness crisis - for example in London, 165,000 people are homeless (and goodness only knows where they can go, particularly with Nimbys like in Amersham and Cheshsm and 'welcoming insular 'locals' elsewhere in the UK...).

Or do you mean, OP, why would he be eligible for housing benefit? Well one very common reason is disability or illness - probably something we'll see an increase in the future because of Long Covid.

Or he might be looking for a job. Especially during a pandemic, redundancy is a common occurrence.

Finally, and the most likely situation, is that he's working but in need of top up benefits due to the combination of low wages and high rents. The majority of benefit claimants are in work.

Social housing is not only the moral solution, it's also the more cost effective long-term (particularly if you take into account all the knock on impacts on individuals and society of insecure housing and homelessness).

He will get a set amount of housing benefit and have to top the rest up from his other benefits.
The gap between my housing benefit and my rent is £500 per month and I can't find any cheaper accommodation in my area

This helps....

I'm trying to figure out how someone can afford to live....

Benefits but has been in employment for around 5 months this year. Now back on benefits (child maintenance service !)

So would he receive a Universal credit amount to top up this wage? And part of this would be money towards housing?

Anyone got any real time figures? I'm looking for evidence of diverting income and fraudulently claiming benefits.

Can you actually afford to live in a £750 pcm property or is this actually impossible when on benefits?

There are online benefit calculators you can use

@lakielady not before UC - he gained employment in January after being on benefits for a year. So definitely UC as not relevant from prior times I don't think

@Fyredraca

There are online benefit calculators you can use

But it isn't me and I've never claimed benefits so I don't know what to enter

No one has the answer to your question.

You need to look at
www.gov.uk/housing-benefit
Enter the postcode & itll tell you the entitlement

But it isn't me and I've never claimed benefits so I don't know what to enter

It's you that needs to give some real time figures, the calculation is based on a person's location, age, disability (which you may not be aware of), and so on. We can't answer without that information.

It used to be with housing benefit, if you were able to afford the rent you were charged before your circumstances changed, there’s a period where you can be awarded housing benefit at the charged rate rather than LHA. I can’t remember what period of time this is. It may be the same under UC.

Long time since I was involved with this so could be that no longer applies but would potentially make sense in their situation.

@LakieLady has given you a lot of information to show that yes it is possible.

There are other top ups and discretionary payments, but no one can answer your question as to whether this particular person has his rent paid.

The thirteen week protected period was scrapped with universal credit.

No, you can't generally afford to live if you are on UC without any extra elements eg disability or having children, you have to subsidise your housing costs and council tax from what is a barely subsistence payment for living costs. Thats the point of the system.

Very dependant on each individual situation.

Some can't really afford it. It's not uncommon for people to go without food so that they can afford the rent. Particularly as he's single, that's very possibly what he's doing (he's unlikely to be housed by the council without children, so no rent = street homelessness).

Others survive. Just. Rent, food, essentials, but absolutely nothing else. A miserable grinding existence.

And then some will be doing ok. Living frugally but just about managing.

It really does depend on individual circumstances.

As for fraud? I don't know this particular case. It obviously does happen - but far more common than benefit fraud is people not claiming or receiving what they're entitled to. Fear, shame, lack of knowledge or support.

I am not allowed housing benefit as it is seen as 'contrived' :/

It will depend on the area, but or example, the Broad Rental Market Area amount for Winchester (Hampshire) for a one bedroom flat/house is £166.85 per week which is £723 per month. That means that the claimant would need to allocate £22 per month of their other benefits to secure a £750 rental.

Is it contrived though, have you challenged it at appeal?

Housing benefit/Local housing allowance are different all over the country. Where I live, the LHA for a 1 bed rate (which is what a single person over 35 would be eligible for) is around £450pcm but that's because rents here are cheaper than many other areas.

Thanks all
I think he is earning - those that paint a painful story of being single, unemployed is what I thought it was like. So if so, how can one afford a private rental of £750 a month...

THANKS - I worked out the LHA weekly rate was £148 so is this on top of the UC amount received?

No disability. Also no JSA as not been in employment for a couple of years (HMP actually!)

Definitely been in employment this year and as soon as CMS started to poke, went back to benefits.

I'm hunting out some actual proof I can make use of....

Put in a postcode for where he lives . Get the LHA for that area. It will tell you whether he’s getting a housing entitlement coving all or nearly all the rent. He’ll then get a basic figure of a little over £100 a week for his food and other essentials. He can earn a small amount without affecting the benefit , after that they take 60p or something from every pound so that part time work is still worth taking. So assuming he’s entitled to the full £750 rent
Plus 420 personal allowance
And he’ll not need to pay council tax either.
£1170.
The personal allowance remains constant , the housing allowance is a calculated at the cost set my his landlord but capped at the LHA.
So if he rented a room in a mates house for £300 a month his UC would be
£420 PA
£300 HA
Total benefit £720

There's no longer a proper safety net.

It's why furlough happened. That was basically the government openly admitting, get made redundant or get sick at your peril.

The lack of safety net is a major reason why (as well as the health impact) Long Covid is to be avoided.

Yeah I lost my job while In a private rent .I got the full amount of the £850 covered because it was within the LHA for housing need.