Can i claim housing benefit for a house owned by my father

[hiblingz]

i recieve housing benefit for a house which i rent from a private landlord.

he has told me that the mortgage payments for the house i am renting from him have gone up

I spoke to the council and they told me i have to cover the shortfall myself as i allready recieve the maximum ammount of benefit.

There is no way i can cover the shortfall so my father has aggreed to buy a house and let it to me (buy to let)

Will i still be able to claim housing benefit?

[joko]

haha...this is all irrelevant...and well done for conveniently glossing over the facts

sigh...clearly you have all made your minds up, but you have still not told me what difference it makes...

and continually changing the subject does not 'win' the argument...

as you seem unable to focus on the point in hand - ie, why shouldnt a landlord and tennant be related ...and have chosen to turn this into a tirade against people claiming housing benefit

i would also add, i get nowhere near £400 in housing benefit so that wont affect me one bit...for the size of this house i could be claiming a lot more than i am - if i wanted to...but i have capped it at £60 per week

[bednobs]

uurrgghh is this still going on?

[joko]

also i am not a child, i am 38...domnt know about you but i stopped expecting my family to pay for things for me about 20-odd years ago...

[overthetop]

Time to stand on your own two feet then.

[B00]

I can see where OTT is coming from, sorry joko.

The difference between you renting from a stranger and your father is massive when you consider that housing benefit pays for your rent (albeit occasionally!) in leaner times.

You admit the house will be yours eventually ,that assurance would be zero if you were renting from anyone other than your dad.

It does appear that eventually, you will be given a house, which has been paid for by everyone else who pays taxes- not something you can get from renting from someone you don't know.

[SnakeEyes]

BOO would you want to work if your future house was paid for by the taxpayers then you wonder why this country has gone to the dogs.

[B00]

Nope snakeyes, if i had a house virtually rent free, i wouldn't work at all. So kudos to joko for actually doing it!

All im saying is that is does smack of unfairness, i guess is the word im looking for, where someone can live in a house, and their rent is paid for them, and that rent is paid to a family member, then the icing on the cake being the house will be given to you at the end of it.

But then again, maybe we should blame the system for allowing things like this to happen and not the individuals?

[SnakeEyes]

This countries benefit system is a joke.

[joko]

i understand that boo...but so what?

i dont understand why that affects anything...?

IT IS NOT MY HOUSE SO WHY SHOULD I LIVE IN IT FOR FREE...i dont know how many other ways i can say that!

IF I DONT RENT IT THEN SOMEONE ELSE WOULD...OUTCOME FOR ALL IS THE SAME.

it will only become mine in a will when my mother dies...may 10-15 even 20 years...lots of people leave their kids houses in wills...

my dad OWNS this house OUTRIGHT - there is no mortgage, and no matter where i lived now, or who i paid rent to - it would still be mine eventually ...but only once my parents have finished with it...it is THEIR BUSINESS!

i still have to pay rent - TO SOMEONE - in the meantime

and besides, that is just my own personal situation...

seriously guys can someone actually address the issue at hand?

[joko]

i pay rent fair and square

[SnakeEyes]

Have you tried working for a living like everyone else and then you could pay your own rent for your future house. You may have to get out of bed in the morning .

[joko]

again this is all just that underlying notion that someone is getting something they are not...and people just can't bear that....even though its legal and sensible.

I am indeed lucky that my dad chose to invest in property many years ago...

i am entitled to the same benefits as everyone else when i need them...and my dad is also entitled to get rent for a property he bought for that reason

no-one is quite sure why its wrong, but all are quite sure it is...

[joko]

snakeeyes...read the rest of the post

and then try to stick to the point

THIS IS NOT ABOUT ME AND MY PARTICULAR SITUATION

[overthetop]

Perhaps your dad would let you live there rent free if you are not earning a living?

[B00]

I'm trying to think of an anology here, but struggling....


I can understand what you mean joko, you have to pay rent to someone, and in this case the someone is your dad. No one has a problem with that at all. I don't think anyone would have a problem if you claimed housing benefit either. The "unfairness" to some of us comes about that at some point, your dad still gets his rent when your between jobs, paid for by taxes (ie, everyone else), your situation doesn't alter- and it becomes REALLY unfair when eventually that house becomes yours after we've helped pay towards it.. The timeframe of when you'll get it is irrelevant to be honest, you will at some point, that's a given. Would it be ok if the rest of us came and stayed rent free for a bit? Afterall, we've help pay towards it ;-)

[SnakeEyes]

Have i upset you suggesting you get a JOB it is what most people do.

[SnakeEyes]

B00 she would be the first in the line to tell you to get a JOB.

[B00]

Snakeyes, she does have a job, but sometimes she's inbetween jobs, it happens to the best of us you know!

I'm all for debating the rights and wrongs of whether she and her dad are entitled to use our taxes the way they do, but lets not get nasty eh?

[overthetop]

Boo, I have a problem with rent being paid to family. If family is wealthy enough to own "properties", they can afford to look after their own. Why me (and the rest of us)?

[SnakeEyes]

B00 there are some near me in-between jobs they have not work for over 10 years. How in-between jobs is fair amount of time.