housing benefit question, moving across the country

[beansmum]

I'm in the process of selling my house and moving to Henley from Edinburgh. I can't afford to buy anything decent down there with cash unless me and bean share a room, just wondering if it's possible to use housing benefit to pay a mortgage. I could get some kind of mortgage with my parents as guarantors (sp?).

The other option is renting, but do you have to find a place before you can get housing benefit?

I NEED to move, going mad up here!

Nope. Housing benefit is for renters only. A woman was recently sent to prison for lying about owning a home and using housing benefit money to pay the mortgage.

You will need to find a place to rent before applying for housing benefit b/c the amount you receive is based on the amount of your rent v. your income.

oh right.

wonder how you're supposed to pay your rent before your benefit comes through, if you're eligible then surely you don't have any money. Stupid really.

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hb did used to pay mortgage interest in certain cases. I doubt very much they'd pay in your situation.

In fact if I was you i would not sell up, rent out the house you own, and rent a place with the money.

If I don't use the money from the house to buy another house I will be giving it to my parents, it was kind of their money to start with so I need to be able to pay it back eventually, not be spending it on rent.

need to move!!!!! Might just buy a boat and a riverside garden!

That would depend on who your landlord is - council or housing association, for example, who may offer lower rents than private landlords - and what sort of income - from job or benefits - that you had.

The amount of 'capital' - savings, stocks, other liquid assets are also taken into consideration when applying for housing benefit, because it is means-tested. So if you had a house in your name and sell it, then the profit is considered capital.

The best thing is to contact the housing office of the council where you are planning to move and discuss options with them first.

Another option is for your parents to purchase a home in their names and then let it to you as a private landlord. Then you could apply for housing benefit.

Here's a good site: shelter

why don't you ask your parents to buy a house and rent it to you? You can claim hb in that situation, but you need to be very businesslike about it.

True, SP. You'll need to provide a copy of a tenancy agreement from your landlord whilst applying for housing benefit - excepting if your landlord is a local authority.

That's what I'm doing just now! But we were going to get the house put into my name before I sell it.

renting it out would be a good plan except there is a HUGE difference between rent where I live and where I want to move to. For what I could rent my 2 dbl bed flat with garage and garden for I could probably get a studio appartment with no garden or parking.

I'm going to be late to pick up beanie now! whoops! Thanks for the advice, will contact the local council down there before I do anything else.

just to reiterate - if the house you are in - is in your name and you sell it - the profits will be expected to pay housing benefit - ify ou tell them you owe it your parents - they wont care you wont get HB

so if I was going to rent in Henley it's not worth putting the house into my name, I'll only do that if I'm going to use the money to buy something, does that sound right?

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But keep in mind that a house is an asset, and will be counted as such. So it WILL impact any means-tested benefit - aside from Child Benefit that you apply for.

Leave it in your parents' name, sell it, have them buy another house in Henley and let it to you as a private landlord - that's the simplest way if you want to claim housing benefit.

If you want to buy another place in Henley, that's fine, but you won't get Housing Benefit as it's designed for low-income renters (like me) who cannot afford their entire rent on the property they rent, much less to purchase a place.

Be careful with the idea of your parents buying a house and renting it to you. You are not usually entitled to HB if you are renting from a close relative (ie parent, child etc) unless you can prove that it is on a commercial basis. If your parents have a house that they are already renting, then they rent it to you that would be OK. But if they buy a house purely so that you can rent it and claim HB - you will not be entitled as the tenancy has been created to take advantage of the benefit system.

actually my parents bought a house for me to rent and i did get hb for it, but if thats not the case where toothyboy lives you may want to check it out. is def ok where i live tho (but i did have a tenancy agreement and had rent paid direct to my mum so no one could say i was keeping it)