Advice about housing benefit

Willow22

Hello, I’m new here and looking for some advice.

My son has Asperger’s syndrome and currently lives with us (his parents) and I am his full time carer.

He is 30 years old and would like to live out of the family home into his own place and gain some independence which is understandable given his age and seeing his friends getting on and him being the only one still living with parents.

He works part time -16 hours a week and at the moment this is the only work he can manage at the moment. He is in receipt of PIP payments - standard rate for both daily living and mobility. 

My question is regarding how he can go about getting his own place and the steps we need to take. 

He is hoping to rent a small flat (private landlord) local to us as I am his full time carer so need him to be close.  How do we go about him accessing financial help towards rent payments?  Do we have to secure the accommodation first or can we apply for housing benefit/UC before he looks for a place? 

One option my husband and I have considered is purchasing a flat in the hope that he would be allowed to rent it from us. We couldn’t afford to let him live rent free as this would be purchased from our life savings and we are both semi retired.

Not sure if anyone here can advise. We intend going to citizens advice anyway to see if they can help. 

Thanks for reading. 

Hopeless

Shelter have some information on this. Sorry, I haven’t been able to post a link. Your son would be able to claim the housing element of universal credit but you would need a proper tenancy agreement and for you to take on all landlord responsibilities

Willow22

thank you. I’ll take a look at Shelter to see if I can find the information you mention ☺️

OverlyAnxious

Hi,

As above, you would need to secure accommodation first, then apply for the Housing Element through Universal Credit.

Does your son already get the basic rate & a health element of UC? If not, the claim for that should be started asap. Then you can add housing costs at a later date.

Housing Benefit can only be claimed above pension age or in supported accommodation now, and it sounds like you are looking at fully independent living, so Housing Benefit doesn't apply in this case.

Buying the property yourselves to rent to your son is a risk. You would need to set up a proper rental agreement, at the market value, for UC to cover the housing costs.

The alternative would be putting down a large deposit with a non-related landlord. 6 months rent upfront could help secure a property. UC will pay the monthly amount, as long as they see a monthly rental agreement figure.

It's also worth looking at the local LHA rates for your postcode. Your son will be entitled to the one-bedroom rate because gets Daily Living PIP. It is unlikely that he would be allowed 2-bed rate unless you have to provide frequent overnight care for him.

Willow22

Hi, thank you for your reply.
He doesn’t currently get any Universal Credit. I wasn’t aware that he was entitled to it but it’s something that I will look into.

OverlyAnxious

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/comment/1044471#Comment_1044471

No problem. If he isn't entitled to Universal Credit due to savings (for example, inheritance) then he won't be entitled to the Housing Element either.

If he has less than £16,000 in savings, then he should be entitled to Universal Credit.

Willow22

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/comment/1044478#Comment_1044478

yes I’ve just checked and he isn’t currently entitled to UC as he lives with us so it’s a bit of a catch 22 situation really. He has a small amount of savings but nowhere near £16,000

OverlyAnxious

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/comment/1044487#Comment_1044487

He won't be entitled to Housing Element while he lives with you, but he should be entitled to other elements of UC if he has less than £16k in savings and a fairly low income.

If you're using an online benefits checker, don't include your income when it says 'household'. That's poorly worded and just means the claimant and their partner, where applicable.