Hi, everyone just thought i would give you a update. Still at the same job. Back in the same situation where this month I have to pay landlord less again!! Dont know where i have gone wrong. Local council have now served a attachment of earnings order on me lol. yeah good luck with that considering job ends in bout five weeks. And that is for deffo this time. I give up. Not entitled to benefits, council say " capable of earning ". Going to ask landlord to evict me but they say wont get anywhere. Dont know how to sort this out now

May be FAQ, but average here wouldn't touch where we are IYSWIM, newport is in a very large proportion council housing
whilst our village is Cardiff Commuter belt and Uni staff

Peachy - I though it was the "average" rent they covered - as I know I could have rent somewhere that was cheaper than the LHA allowance.........however I wasn't prepared to live in those areas LOL.

The deficit is a PITA, basically each area sets an amount for a rented property- but it's done across the whole area so here we would get the same as a place in Newport (£450) but that leaves a shortfall of £150 on our actual rent- they only cover the equivalent of the cheapest rent. Presumably tehy've never heard of fixed term tenenacies where you can't just give notice (not that we would atm).

But that gap is payable by you yes, sadly.
A lot also depends on what they decide your family needs size wise- again here they took away the disability rules so whilst ds1 and ds3 both need a separate room for disability related reasons as instructed by Paed, we can only claim for a 3 bed (not that we claim but YKWIM- if we needed to)

Is there another angle you can take on this? DH's oldprofession had a linked organisation called a benevolent trust that hepled people in straits, have a google? DH was linked to the news industry so his society (NewsTraid) paid for therapies for the boys and of their own volition when he was too ill to owrk sent us a cheque for a weeks food every few weeks.

Otherewise you're either going to have to visit the CAB and request a full benefits and debt check or consider moving down a house grade which is hard emotionally and practically

Oh I'm so sorry to hear all that. I have to admit it's been years since I had to claim HB for renting so am not up to speed with it all. Good luck.

Hi everyone, thank you so much for your responses. A update and advice needed. Like i said earlier the rent is £950.00 and was meant to be paid Friday just gone. I can only pay him £500.00 and that will leave me with £40.00 for the week. I keep going to text him explaining that I cannot pay the full rent this month and then cancel the text am scared of the response. I have spoken to the housing benefit people and they say i earn to much to get any help with it. If I dont get a new job the housing benefit will be £676.00 so i have to find the rest. HOW DOES THAT WORK OUT THEN, BEATS ME AND I WORK IN FINANCE. So guys i have tried every avenue going. If I work part time, the tax credit people say that the credit is based on last years earnings 2007/2008 so will be entitled to £40.00 per month. So now im going to text landlord to tell him i cant pay all the rent and spend my £40.00 lol. Daughter is 16 and just left school, i cant see the point anymore honestly i just want to hide away now and let them do thier worst

Misssunny, were we not in a recession that has caused all the local industry (maionly the steel works) under and put many companies out of business taking jobs with them, I might say interesting (though still agree), however as the local job pages have gone from 7 sides to zero I shall roll my eyes instead.

Besides, if I were a person of sixty single whod paid tax all his life only to e told after a redundancy that I could not claim I'd be seriously less than happy

Message withdrawn

coolma IIRC they reduced the 2waiting time for interest payments to reduce the number of pewople struggling quite recently

FWIW HB isn't that simple either- we can't claim even though we're entitled as we can't move areas (DS3 just settled into an SNU, you cant move asd kids about often) and housing agencies here refuse HB claimants nand have contract get out clauses. We're scratching by.

and coolma - she'll only get all of her rent paid if the LHA that she's entitled to (based on number of bedrooms she needs) is £225 (roughly) a week. Otherwise she'll have to top up.

Oh we're ok now cos I got a job, but when i was out of work and we were basiclally living on half a salary they wouldn't even discuss it for six months. I know we chose to buy a house but I do get really angry that rent is automatically (mostly) paid straight away, and, yet we're penalised for trying.. I hope I'm not offending anyone but it seems unfair.

Maidenvoyage
are you sure you aren't entitled to any HB or CT benefit? Although your income is quite high. It looks like you may have to move to a smaller or cheaper flat.

Expat - do you have nobody who could stand guarantor for you? That's what we had to do as DH wasn't working and I'm on maternity leave. I went to my local authority housing dept and they explained their scheme for helping people into private rental, and they had a list of letting agents who would accept HB and/or their deposit guarantee scheme. BUT we missed out on their help because the landlord hadn't served us notice - it was a verbal (friendly) agreement so technically we could have stayed another two months until he served notice, so make sure you get notice in writing from the landlord, then get to the council asap. I know you are in scotland so it's different but worth looking into?

I'm really sorry for you - we are in the same situation but thankfully I'm going back to work in 4 weeks that should take the wolf from the door. Alternatively, could you get a pt job for the purpose of finding a flat? I don't know how small your children are so it might be impossible - but if you were working , even if you were paying childcare and lost HB so no better off financially, letting agents would look more favourably on you. It's insane but there it is.

Oh forgot to say, and if the landlord turns up on your doorstep, you can call the police and get him removed for harrassment . Goes miles in court that bit.
(sorry if Im giving away secrets to screw over LL's but I feel sorry for the OP)

Coolma, Dss will pay the interest on your mortgage. Change it to interest only and they will pay it as long as it is deemed reasonable. Thats what I had to do last year.
And OP, I used to be a lettings neg before the kids. You must be 3 full months in arrears before you can be evicted. Its not nice, but even if you dont pay for 3 months, get the court papers through, then pay £100. Suddenly you are no longer 3 months in arrears and it gets thrown out of court. Check your tenancy agreement, as long as you aren't on a fixed term (i.e it finishes on such a date), and its a rolling contract, you can get away with this for AGES. Albeit a shitty landlord on your back (quite rightly I guess), but you wont be homeless. I know thats really shite, but hopefully it will put your mind at rest that you have longer than you thought to get something else sorted.

Well you will get your rent paid - so what's the real problem? Think yourself lucky you don't have a mortgage. You would get nothing then. Sorry sore point.

maidenvoyage, it's worth looking around for other rentals, prices are seriously falling. It might also be worth using that as ammo to negotiate the rent down on the place you're in; the landlord's unlikely to want the hassle of a new tenant with a potential void before they arrive.

Maidenvoyage.
You can claim housing benefit and income support if your children are young enough.
You will get enough to support you and pay the rent, but there won't be much extra.

It is doable.

I've done it for almost 8 years.

It is crap that they don't give enough help if you are working, but you won't have to move out of your home, and you will be able to keep your children so long as you budget.

Good Luck

Just know, maiden, you're not alone. That's all.

I'll not be away to my sleep till at least 3, same as last night, for now the date grows closer it's all the worst for me.

You feel you let them down, I know. I do, too.

Good grief, where to go? I don't tell her, 'Woman, when you die I will have no choice but to sell the lot just to help keep the wolf from the door, WHY do you continue to make me feel bad?'

But ah, feck it!

Like I said, it's a moot point.

I'd rather starve or sell my voice on some line (I'm no longer young enough or pretty enough to sell myself or I'd have no qualms about that) for what are our needs.

She doesn't get it and never will.

I've booked a storage unit for 1 September and a holiday caravan for 1 October, so as to not force my beloved landlord to go through formal process in order for us to present as homeless.

And she still expects me to stump up the £200 for all their British passports - 4 of them, 3 child and 1 adult - to go and see them and they'll pay.

I don't need a fucking holiday, lady! I need help with housing them!

Sorry, folks, I should be away from here. It's too emotional and I am crying for it now and will not sleep for it again.

I meant nothing by it, except that we are a working poor family and, later on today, I will have to go round phoning, 'My husband is a working man, but we have still partial housing benefit. Our tenancy comes to an end at end September . . .'

'Working parents should be given more support and access to affordable housing.'

Goodness, don't I know!?

Oh, don't I know?

I have put it all off. I stay up till hours like this, I cry tears as salty as the sea loch just metres away from here. I have nowhere to confess it or even say it but for here. My own mother blames me for it - doesn't get it, doesn't want to, oh, who cares not it's a moot point?

I cannot sleep for this. If I want to sleep I've to tranq myself, it's that bad.

What are we to do? Oh, Gott, wot?

We've no place to live ourselves in just three months.

I've every sympathy with the OP, believe you me.

I could cry a thousand lochs for the shame of it, I could. But it would make no difference so it would.

Message withdrawn

Message withdrawn

POTC, we are working poor, I can see where you are coming from.

You are not alone. You do not need to justify yourself, some of us, we know how it is.

I'm sorry you are going through this.

We have to go to letting agencies and tell them we're a working poor family and will this landlord take WTC and CTC as part of our income?

It's so damn humiliating it's not true.

And so tbh like I said I can see why people don't even friggin' bother.

My mother in the US she thinks I'm making all this up. She doesn't get it. She thinks if you work the streets should be paved with gold.

Hello?! Is anyone home?

POTC i so agree with you, i am in the same situation, i have worked my arse of for 12 years and really enjoyed working and certainly had a sense of pride with it but have now got to the stage i simply cannot afford to work and thats it. anyone with sensible solutions please advise x

MissSunny I find your comments extremely offensive.

I have worked my arse off for 6 years as a lone parent because I wanted to show my children what I believe to be the 'right' way and not live off benefits despite knowing I would be better off that way.

Last year I fought with Social Services when they tried to insist I quit work.

At the start of this year I went back on to medication I haven't needed for 8 years to enable me to carry on working.

I have now reached a point where I am paying to work. By the time I pay for travel to work, childcare, and all other bills I have much less than if I didn't work.

For my own sanity and health, and the wellbeing of my children I just can't keep on like this. It is not a choice I have made lightly and it really is one I wish I hadn't had to make at all. I would like nothing more than to continue in my well paid job that I love but I would be destroying my family to do it. NOTHING, even principles I had previously held as very important, is worth that.

And I haven't actually said I would be on benefits, I said I would be taking a poorly paid job. This means I can work closer to home and will not be penalised from the tax credits system (which I know some see as a benefit but as a lone parent there is f-all way of working without it, and you don't get wtc if you don't work) to the tune of more than I actually earn over and above the level.

Please think before you post, I have tried very very hard to find ways to stay on in my job and it just can't work anymore. Unless of course you have a magic solution that would solve the problem of paying out more than comes in?

I dont want to go part time in some poxy job that im over qualified for. Like i said i love what i do and im blinkin good at it, but with the recession they are now offering 25k for what is a 30k + job so what am i meant to do. My contract finishes in four weeks, have had agencies contact me with a much lower wage and i guess i have to accept it and then who knows what. FFS i want to carry on working i truly do, would hate to sit at home and that is not a reflection on anyone else its just the way that i am. Have never been a stay at home mum and think my kids are quite independent from it, (they can cook, clean etc). but at the end of the day what choice have i but to try and work the system like everyone else. God my mother would turn in her grave x

'Many people would be better off on benefits POTC but most of us struggle on to show our kids that working hard and providing for your family is the right way to do things.'

Thanks for that, MissSunny. We do what we can.

I have no probs with people on benefits, especially lone parents (I have big probs with parents who swan off to leave their children at the mercy of the state), but it can be frustrating at times, particularly when it comes to housing and not just because it's so dear when you rent privately but also the insecurity of private renting.

I try to sell it as 'life as an adventure' to my children but they have an American passport, too, and really I'm under no illusions that with their looks and accents they will fuck right off from here and probably have a much better standard of living there than we can ever give them here.

Message withdrawn

if you're earning £25K you don't qualify for working tax credits. you may qualify for increased child tax credit for childcare. i don't know, but it would appear unlikely you'd get housing benefit and definitely not council tax benefit.

i understand where you are coming from POTC.

we put an app in for housing - it's all HA here. LOL.

they offered us this starting on the 2nd floor maisonette in a block so bad obviously the homeless are turning it down because 7 months on it's still vacant.

i told the housing officer, 'sorry, this is too high up for a family with 3 children 5 and under' (it had two balconies) and she said, 'oh, but your kids won't be young so long.'

i said, 'have you ever lived in a second-floor flat with little kids? because i can assure you, it's shite.'

if you're earning £25K you don't qualify for working tax credits. you may qualify for increased child tax credit for childcare. i don't know, but it would appear unlikely you'd get housing benefit and definitely not council tax benefit.

i understand where you are coming from POTC.

we put an app in for housing - it's all HA here. LOL.

they offered us this starting on the 2nd floor maisonette in a block so bad obviously the homeless are turning it down because 7 months on it's still vacant.

i told the housing officer, 'sorry, this is too high up for a family with 3 children 5 and under' (it had two balconies) and she said, 'oh, but your kids won't be young so long.'

i said, 'have you ever lived in a second-floor flat with little kids? because i can assure you, it's shite.'

I've always worked but have just handed in my notice and will look for a minimum wage job. Got fed up of fighting the system, I'll have a better income on benefits or doing a poorly paid job than I had with my very well paid job. It is a ridiculous system and it makes me sad that I've had to give up a job I love because of it.

Try putting theoretical info into the site, it really does give almost spot on estimates.

would love to work part time always done 40+ hours but love every min of it. Now i have to think of dd and finish bringing her up by hook or by crook

Im sure it will but without sounding greedy and i truly mean that i need to earn min of £33k to even scrape by so how will earning £8k less help me. I will give that web site a try but i have to put in what i am curently earning so its going to say "f off u greedy woman lol" Im just a bit stressed and not looking forward to the phone call morro night. I just get fed up with hearing how so and so's daughter who had a baby and never worked "just moved into a beautiful house up the road and her rent in £10.00 per week". Sorry sounding bitter and twisted and im not lol x

oh and part time- income assessed obv, but yes if16 hours plus

Well Im not sure the system specifically encourages poeple not to work to get a house- TBH the only way you get one here is absolutre homelessness, even those who cannot work (carers, disabled) have a silly wait to get a house; those of us who can at least try to get a job should IMVHO be at the bottom of the ist- we can still get HB if qualified after all.

Do try the entitled to webiste- dh lost his job recently (is self employed now but at that pesky all input little profit stage LOL0 and it helped wor out where we stand- which is not in luxury but not in starvation either 9though we refused HB as we would ahve lost our house and nowhere in village will take HB)

Hope some work comes along soon

'Someone said if i work part time i can claim benefits, housing etc is this true? '

Depends on your income.

IF you earn about £15,000 or less/annum and have dependent children you may qualify for working tax credit and, depending on your council and how they assess your needs, you may also get partial housing benefit.

and you'd still get child tax credits for children under 16 if you have custody most of the time.

Yes Maiden, Dh and i both work full time and are entitled due to our childcare costs and terrible salaries!

Hi everyone, thank you for your messages. I am sitting here and worked out what i can pay the landlord and its £550. Have been talking to friends and my siser who says let him evict you, go into a hostel with 16 year old girl and sit and wait. Why would or should i pack up my honme that i work bloody hard for to go into a hostel. Saying that I have no choice, landlord will go mad morro when i pay half the rent into his account. Work today was told end of July. Told agency he said most he can get me now is £27k thats going to be less than what i am on now so fighting a losing battle. I am going to housing people morro took the day off cant sleep with worrying about it and tell them i am prepared to work but they need to help me. Someone said if i work part time i can claim benefits, housing etc is this true?

we'd never, ever be housed by the council as we work. it's not enough that our tenancy is actually coming to an end. it even has an end date written into it because our landlord is living abroad but coming home.

but the council (it's all HA here) still wants him to go through, and pay for, the formal court process of evicting us in order for us to be considered homeless.

my mum doesn't believe the tenancy laws here. she think i'm making it all up. so they're no help even though they're loaded. whatever.

we'll probably wind up in more debt getting another place, but that's how it is.

i don't blame people who go on and stay on benefits, tbh.

in a lot of ways, you wind up at least as good off if not a smidge or two better, depending on your circumstances, than if you are working poor.

Message withdrawn

Message withdrawn

Go to www.entitledto.com and fill out all your info, it will give you a rough guide of what you will be entitled to. You may even be entitled to housing benefit now depending on your circumstances. My Dh and i are even though we both work full time due to our childcare expenses.

They're not there to fob anyone off.

Mspontipine - not in my experience I'm afraid. I still stand by that the best thing to do is to arm yourself with as much info about what is available and what you're entitled to before you go in, so you can't be fobbed off. Knowledge is power!

"Every benefit customer's benefit is assessed according to their individual circumstances not on how much knowledge they have of the system.

Each individual claim is assessed on the information provided therefore their entitlement is based on their personal needs not what they know fgs."

Sorry but that's a load of rubbish.

a quick question - it was no quick question - they were going through the form on the phone with him!

Do you know - I really don't know that one but can I just say before I beetle off to bed - the best thing to do if you think you could be entitled to any benefits is to fill in the claim forms. Benefits and in particular IS and JSA are so incredibly complex and involved - believe me it was my job pre-ds. Not excusing anyone but sometimes the call centre staff do not get the extremly indepth training that the actual form processors do. It is sometimes hard to judge entitlement from a quick question on the phone there are so many ifs sos and wherefores. The actual guides to entitlement used to be about 8 huge lever arch full (Prob all online now) with changes and updates going on every week.

Most staff at jc+ etc are trying to do the best job they can which is to deliver the correct amount of money to the correct people.

If you checkout their website you should find the answer to your lp advisor question.

lol - I knew what you meant

(what about the Lone PArent advisor thing though?)

he did make it clear - when he rang back up he gave the EXACT same information to the questions as he did the first time and was told "fine no problem".

He explained himself very clearly (that's his biggest "skill" is his clarity) on both occasions.

And it's not the first instance I know of of different people saying different things.

OOOh that word was "didn't" not "din't" can I make that clear!!

Whyever din't he make it clear he wasn't if that was the reason they were giving him not to claim FAQ??

"Every benefit customer's benefit is assessed according to their individual circumstances not on how much knowledge they have of the system."

hmm - yeah right - that's why when DH first called up to claim JSA he was told he couldn't as he was "involved in industrial action" (he wasn't - and he'd used my phone to call and he clearly DIDN'T say that). He was told to wait a month....

I came on MN and posted about it and was told by several people that it was rubbish and he should call back. He called back and was told something different - he could claim straight away.

And - something I want to know for myself.

Do you have to be claiming IS as a Lone Parent before you can get an appointment with a Lone PArent advisor?

You're taking a load of crap limonchik. Every benefit customer's benefit is assessed according to their individual circumstances not on how much knowledge they have of the system.

Each individual claim is assessed on the information provided therefore their entitlement is based on their personal needs not what they know fgs. The staff are there to assist claimants not to hold back as much as the money as possible.

if you were to lose your job you would get full housing benefit, IS (or job seekers possibly depending on the age of your children), then you'd get child tax credits as well - oh and council tax benefit.

What the council told you in the past about help would no longer apply as you would no longer be earning a decent wage. So although you may not be high on the list for council housing now - if you lost your job then you would be.

Wow £950 a month is a lot to pay on your own even on a good wage. Is there really nothing cheaper in the private sector?

You'll be entitled to housing and council tax benefit too though, right? I would get independent advice on exactly what benefits you are entitled to, because the people at the job centre will NOT tell you - they will give you the absolute minimum they can. If you go in there with all the details knowing exactly what you are entitled too, you will get it.

It's worth being on the housing register even in a low band - and if your circumstances change you may be moved up a band, especially as a lone parent with young children. When they allocate houses (or in some places you have to bid/apply for them), they run through all the bands, so if no one in higher bands want the house you may still get it. And it depends on where in the country you are as to how much housing is available. In London you probably have little chance unless you are really in need, but I have known single people in their 20s to get housing association flats in Bristol.

Hi thanks for replying to me. Yes put myself on the list in jan of this year when i realised that i was going to struggle. The council told me that I am a band E which basically means that I can afford alternative housing. When I said to them the reason why I was applying for housing was because private rental was crippling me they said "but you are capable of earning a decent wage" and that was that. lol. As for benefits because i have been working I am only entitled to £62.00 per week job seekers, not entitled to anything else. Seriously I have paid tax and insurance for a million years since i was sixteen. Ok not a million but I am now 44 and worked all my life and loved working but I cant afford to anymore and dont know where to turn. x

Are you on the council housing list? If you aren't on it, then they won't house you.

"If i dont look for another job and have to rely on the state I know they will not help me because I have been told that I am capable of earning a decent wage"

I don't understand this - if you lose your job, surely you are entitled to benefits? Of course you still won't be able to go out and buy loads of new clothes on benefits either.

Hi all, I have posted here before a long time ago (bout ds who was and still is a waste of space) and do watch mumsnet in my lunch break. Long story cut short I am finishing my contract at the end of July and friends are advising that dont worry bout getting another job and I should just claim benefits and let the social pay rent etc. Must admit even though i earn a good wage the rent here is £950.00 a month and as a sole earner (been on my own with two kids for long tine now) its crippling me. Have no social life, dont buy new clothes, dont go out etc but I want to work. I love the challenge of my job and have a personal pride in it. But in truth cant afford to work. Do get a tax credit and family allowance etc. I bring home £500 a week without the help but its not enough. If i dont look for another job and have to rely on the state I know they will not help me because I have been told that I am capable of earning a decent wage, that is fair point but they are not taking into consideration that I am paying £50.00 short of £1000.00 per month rent. For gods sake I just want to earn a good wage and support my family I dont want to live on benefits but why cant the local council house me at £400.00 rent and then i can carry on working, (not that there is anything wrong with that) please no attacks feeling low enough as it is. (rent is due on Friday and I cant meet it). I am worrying bout bills etc and struglling to cope now just want a friendly constructive chat. In these sad times where there are so many redundancies I am really worried that I wont get another job, but on the other hand think that if after paying tax and insurance all these years the goverment cannot help me maybe my friends are right. Let the landlord evict me, go on the dole and let life take me over. Sorrry feeling very sorry for myself and very tired and sick of struggling lol.