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Original poster

Council rent arrears?

20 replies

Yukana · 12/02/2011 10:25

First time posting here, I'm a bit nervous.

DP received a letter today from the council saying that he owes them £600 in rent arrears. I have no idea why he owes them rent arrears but I know he won't keep it from me if I ask. (He was previously homeless and I took him in after falling in love with him .)

Back on topic - DP can work but has no qualifications that people who employ want. (He was in the army previously).
So he can only get a minimum wage job and can't work in the evenings; (one of my mental problems is that I can't be alone for long periods of time otherwise I'll start seeing things, my mother is with me during the day usually).

I'm on benefits because I can't work, and right now the money from benefits is money we need for rent, food, bills, etc.

Not only that but I am pregnant with our first child, and we need to move into a council house as the apartment we are currently in is too small for three adults and one baby.

We can't afford to pay the money, and I'm stressed as everything seems to be going topsy-turvy. JSA haven't paid DP in weeks, my ESA has stopped for a reason I don't even know so I've had to make a new claim on there.

This may sound all mumble-jumbled, I'm not very good at explaining matters like this, but what should I do? Any advice is much appreciated.

OP posts:

GypsyMoth · 12/02/2011 10:28

Your on benefits, do why no housing benefit to pay rent?

Original poster

Yukana · 12/02/2011 11:04

Because we live with my mother, the lease is in her name. I pay rent to her and don't get housing benefit, my mother gets housing benefit. (She has bipolar.)

OP posts:

BachAtTheMoon · 12/02/2011 11:09

Try going to your local Citizens Advice.

They are brilliant at sorting out this kind of thing and can even do the communicating for you.

Hope things pick up for you Op

crystalglasses · 12/02/2011 11:22

Are these rent arrears from a former tenancy of his? Was he evicted because of non payment of rent? He is highly unlikely to be offered another council tenancy if he has former tenancy arrears.
This all sounds a bit fishy to be honest. If you really pay rent to your mother there is no reason why you shouldn't get housing benefit as you are a separate household. If you are not really paying rent but only giving your mother some money towards your board and lodgings, that is a different matter altogether. does your mother decalre this on her housing benefit claim?

If your partner can get a job whether on minimum wage or not, surely he should be working rather than claiming JSA.
If you live with your mother, why can't she be with you in the evenings as well so that your partner can go to work?

If your partner was in the army, don't they have some sort of resettlement scheme or support/help to get them on their feet in civvy street.

Unless there are other circumstances that you haven't explained I think the rent arrears will mean you won't get much help from the council and maybe you should think about looking for a home of your own in the private sector.

GypsyMoth · 12/02/2011 11:24

Yes, rent arrears won't go in your favour. Where are they from?

Original poster

Yukana · 12/02/2011 11:32

Crystal, I guess I didn't think of revealing that personal information.

The rent arrears he said were back from when he was in a previous relationship about 2-3 years ago? So the council have taken this long to write this letter, which I find fishy and irritating, but that's beside the point.

As for paying rent, I don't think my mother has put it on her housing benefit claim and I guess I'd pay half of the rent and half of the bills, my part of the food etc. I'm not sure what you'd call that, but I don't know how to elaborate there any further.

DP does have work sometimes, but it is only temporary jobs and he no longer has any more work. We live in a small village so temp jobs turn up sometimes, but it's not enough. He has been looking for jobs regularly because he wants to work, but there aren't any that will take him due to his lack of qualifications. (Entered the army at 16).

My mother has other commitments, she has work for the local church, clubs she is part of (bible study and a knitting club in the village), plus she is a carer for a lady across the road who she works for with a small amount of pay.

I believe the British Legion might do but I don't know much about it. (DP probably knows more than I do), so I cannot really say any more on that.

We have looked for a home in the private sector but we don't have the savings for it and it's too expensive for us at the moment.

OP posts:

LIZS · 12/02/2011 11:33

Agree it seems unlikely that the council will help you until you have paid back what is owed. Also as you are not technically homeless you won't be high priority to be rehoused, and may have to settle for a b and b or flat initially rather than a house if they help.

There must be more to this since he has rent arrears from a while back and is on JS. Have you asked yet ? How long have you been together ? He would presumably have had HB at the time, or savings, which should have gone towards it and rent like Council tax are the debts you have to prioritise. What does he say about his money being stopped and how are you planning for the future to break out of financial doldrums. Maybe CAB could help you do so.

GypsyMoth · 12/02/2011 11:35

Er, I think your mother may be committing benefit fraud here! You might need to sort that asap

Also, as your dp was previously homeless, guess there was nowhere to send the arrears letter to?

LIZS · 12/02/2011 11:37

maybe they have been trying to track him down but haven't been able to if he was homeless. It may well not be his first notification anyway. Are they now going to court over it now ? The council may have to accept an repayment plan but it will mean that your finances get scrutinised by the courts to look at what is realistic to pay back each week/month.

LIZS · 12/02/2011 11:41

and yes your mother should tell the council you both live there and contribute. Is she claiming a single person's discount for Council Tax ?

Original poster

Yukana · 12/02/2011 11:45

Hey everyone, feel a bit guilty about revealing so much personal information so please bear with me. (Pregnant and feeling all over the place at the moment)

Tiffany -
My mother is not committing benefit fraud, and I'm pretty sure of it. The money she gets from her work is money she tells the benefits people about, and it's either £20 a week or less. I'm not even sure if she gets paid anymore. Other than that, I'm not sure what you are referring to.

LIZS -
You have a point, seeing as he was homeless for about a year, it could've just been them tracking him down. It's only the first letter so no, it's not going to court.
I've discussed it with my family and think we could be rehoused soon, due to my age and our circumstances - I don't really want to reveal that though as I'll probably be looked down upon by others.

OP posts:

Original poster

Yukana · 12/02/2011 11:46

Plus, I've been living here for about five years, the council knows everything, my benefits know everything, and our landlord knows everything.
(Me and my mother are extremely close, we're more like best friends.)

OP posts:

Tortington · 12/02/2011 11:47

ring up nd offer 4 per week

Original poster

Yukana · 12/02/2011 11:48

Super -
...I feel incredibly stupid for some reason, as that is a really good idea. I could afford that, actually.

OP posts:

crystalglasses · 12/02/2011 11:50

I do know somthing about how local authorities chase former tenancy rent
arrears. Very often it takes time for them to trace the former tenant, which may be why the letter has come out of the blue (but they are entitled to recover the rent provided 6 years haven't elapsed between the debt acruing and their notification to you) If your partner had a joint tenancy with a former partenr they would be equally liable for the rent, however the council is entitled to try and recover the rent from either person. Possibly his ex partner is untraceable, or has no income, so they are trying to get the money off him?
Alternatively he may have been the sole tenant and so soley responsible for paying the rent.
Is your partner saying that he doesn't owe the rent? If so he should ask for a full statement. Sometimes rent arrears acrue because tenants simply leave the premises without telling the landlord, not realising that rent will still be charged to their rent account until the premises are offically back in the councils possession.

Bearing in mind the financial situation your partner finds himself in, he should seek advice from the CAB, neighbourhood advice centre or go online to Shelter. Depending on individual curcumstances and the policy of the local authority, he may be lucky in having the rent arrears written off, but more likely is that he will have to agree to pay an agreed weekly sum from his JSA (there is an agreed maximum amount that the local authority can expect)until the arrears have been repaid.

there other, less honest ways of getting round your hoising predicament but I won't go there and nor should you.

Tortington · 12/02/2011 11:51

ifthe tenancy is going in your name only they can't hold the arrears against you - but they might if you are both going on the tenancy.

my advice to you would beto get the tenancy in your name anyway.

ive been married for 22 years, and i had the tenancy in my name when i was in social housing.

whilst its lovely to love each other and thing that he is your forever, it's perhaps best to think more practically, make sure the tenancy is in your name

if your relationship works out - fabulous - no problems there then

if not - the tenancy is yours not his and he can be removed

Original poster

Yukana · 12/02/2011 11:56

Thank you everyone for the help, although I feel a bit nervous about posting here it's given me an idea of what happens/what to expect and what I can do.

I'll talk to DP fully about this and see if we can arrange something, plus see if we can get any further help should what they expect him/us to pay be too much.

OP posts:

WimpleOfTheBallet · 12/02/2011 12:05

Yukana you're doing the right thing in asking advice on all this...the CAB WILL give you good and confidential advice so don't worry abot getting your Mum in trouble.

crystalglasses · 12/02/2011 12:09

This is his debt, not yours, so you won't have to pay a thing. The best thing your partner can do is to contact the local authority, ask them to send him a statement of his rent account (they may have made a mistake) and tell them he is seeking advice from the CAB about how to repay the debt if he indeed owes it. Then he should go to the CAB without delay to get them to negotiate on his behalf. The council are far more likely to take a benign view if the CAB are involved than if he just offers a random £4.00 a week, which, quite frankly, he will probably not be able to keep up over the x number of years it will take to clear the debt.

Is the lcoal authority that is chasing him for the debt the same one that you are currently apply to for housing? If not, it is unlikely they will be interested because he doesn't owe them anything. however I agree that he shouldn't be a joint tenant for the same reasons that others have posted.

scaryteacher · 12/02/2011 17:11

The Army do provide resettlement, and former HM Forces personnel have a wide and varied skill set that employers value. He must have had some qualifications to join up, and depending how long he was in for, there should have been the opportunity to study for more.

If you google employment opportunities for ex HM Forces, there are stacks of websites detailing jobs available. Why does he (a) not re-enlist if he is desperate for work, or (b) at least get an interview with a CV specialist to sell his skills gained whilst in the Services? To say that he was in the Army and he has no skills is just utter bollocks I'm afraid, and if he is feeding you this line, he's fibbing.

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