Help with Housing costs as an owner occupier on irESA

Camellia

Hi

Has anyone had any success getting some sort of help with housing expenses such as house service charges, ground rent and buildings insurance as a flat owner on irESA?

I am aware I am not eligible for Housing Benefit through my Local Authority but have read somewhere online that there may be assistance through the DWP - ESA Mortgage Interest / Housing Expenses Team.

Thanks in advance for any help you may be able to give.

Camellia

Holly_Scope

Hi @Camellia. This one was quite difficult. I've tried to find some specific information for your circumstances but only been able to locate that pertaining to landlord owners -Universal Credit: service charges - guidance for social landlords - GOV.UK. It might be worth contacting someone like Turn2us or Citizens Advice who might have a bit more expertise in this area. I hope you're able to gain some clarification.

Camellia

hi Holly,

Thanks for looking into it. I ended up getting advice through the MacMillan Benefits Advice People who were able to find the relevant laws etc, I also managed to get hold of someone from the House Service Charge HSC Support Team for ESA at the DWP and they told me my next steps including submitting some very detailed proof of various eligible costs. My case is being looked at at the moment. I’ll soon be moving over to UC and there is similar support for HSCs for owner occupiers, albeit less generous.

Holly_Scope

I'm really pleased you're making progress with this @Camellia. It's a very complicated situation so thank you for sharing what you've done and where you've been gaining support. It could be really helpful for someone else in the future looking into this. I hope things go in your favour 😊