Benefits and Inheritance advice please (inc child maintenance)

[ByAmberteacher]

If someone who claims ESA, housing benefit and says they cannot work due to illness inherits 40% of a house from their parents, will this affect the benefits they can claim?
They inherited the house 2 years ago and the most recent child maintenance annual statement says they are claiming benefits so still have to keep paying the £6 a week. Would owning a house worth £350,000 affect how much CM he pays?
A little more context, the person lives in social housing and his brother has gone to live in the inherited house. My child is named in the will to inherit 2% of the house when it is sold, not sure this will be as their Uncle has now moved into the house. Thank you for all your advice.

No. Assets are irrelevant for child maintenance.

Thank you for the very quick replies

What is the brother's age?

Why would owning 40% of a house affect the amount of money he had for child maintenance?

If they own 40% of a property they don't live in, I would hope that this makes them ineligible for benefits. Benefits should be for people in genuine need of support.

It does seem that to claim ESA, you cannot have more than £16,000 of assets. If what you say is correct, they have assets of £140,000.00.

They would not be eligible for income-related ESA but would be able to claim contributions-based ESA.

They would not be eligible for any means tested benefits like housing benefit or UC because of the value of the house.

59

Owning a house doesn’t affect his income so won’t affect the maintenance he’s expected to pay.

In the will it says the house has to be sold, so I am wondering how £150,000 in the bank would affect his benefits and therefore how it would affect the £6 a week he pays. Would it mean it stops if he has to stop getting benefits. The truth is - I don't know the answer to this question. Hence, asking here to find someone who is more knowledgeable or maybe has experience of this situation.. Thank you

Depends if it’s where he lives or an additional property I think

Thank you - this is really useful. I completely agree with you. He has been falsely claiming as ill for years and is definitely not in genuine need of ESA and associated benefits (we have not been together since I found out 13 years ago when our child was a baby)

He has a social housing house and his brother has moved into the house I am posting about today

Thank you for taking the time to reply. I didn't know this. At the point of the child maintenance review it said he was on government benefits. This was 3 years after he inherited the house

If he claims universal credit or other income dependent benefits his equity in a property he doesn't live in will be classed as savings equity etc and will affect his benefits . If over 16000 he will lose his benefits

What I am confused about is, will owning the house affect the benefits he receives? - ESA and housing benefit that I know of

If the will states that your DC should receive 2% of the equity from the house, then where’s the £7k he’s inherited?

Thank you - this is so useful

Sorry I am not sure?
The grandfather has left 40% to each of his adult children
10% to the eldest grandchild
And 2% to the other grandchildren (including my child)
The house would sell for upwards of £350,000

He's committing fraud by claiming housing benefit when he has equity in a house he does not live in. It is likely that the ESA claim is also fraudulent.

I would be reporting him to a benefit frd helplline

Thank you. I have reported him numerous times over the past 13 years as he is has no medical issues to claim ESA. Then since his parents died and I knew him and his brother would inherit the house, I have reported about every 5-6 months. I am guessing that nothing has been actioned, because when I received the child maintenance annual statement recently, it says in receipt of government benefits and there's an attachment to benefits deduction for £6 ish a week. He needs taking to court for benefit fraud! (and he still lives in a social housing 2 bed house)

If he's got £16k plus in the bank then he will no longer be entitled to ESA. I'm not sure about property, if he's actually living in it?

Hi he has a social housing house and his brother has moved into the house that is the subject of the inheritance.

The ESA will depend if he's receiving contributions based or not. Savings don't impact contributions based.

If the house is meant to be sold and monies distributed to the beneficiaries then you should contact the executor on behalf of your child. They're entitled to their money and the executor is responsible for the distribution

Thank you - I appreciate your reply. The executors are the father of my child that we have had no contact with for 13 years and his brother who is living in the house. I found the Will on the government probate website after the mother of one of the other grandchildren contacted me. I am trying to do as much research as possible before tackling this. The Will does have a solicitors address on it.