Questions ref Housing element of Universal Credit

kenny1967

Hi,

The home I live in atm is with a good old work friend who has allowed me to live there rent free in his home which is mortgaged. Although I pay towards bills etc

I have lived there for 10 + years.

Unfortunately he is moving abroad with his partner & the house is going up for sale.

I am 58 years old & presently claiming ESA (Support Group) & Universal Credit. I am paid both after transitioning over to UC in July. As I was not paying rent (the type of mortgage my friend has did not allow him to rent the property anyway) I did not claim the housing element.

I have regisitered with my local authority housing office for rehousing options. However alongside that I am now looking a private rental flats & will at some point need to claim the housing element. As the whole rental system has changed I have brushed up on important things I need to consider like the bedroom tax & my LHA. It seems a daunting minefield.

My understanding is if I secure a 1 bedroom flat I will receive the full LHA for a 1 bedroom towards my rent. But if I can't secure a 1 bedroom & get a 2 bedroom flat I will be penalised with the bedroom tax with a deduction of 14%. For example in my area the LHA for a one bed flat is around £113 pw, but if I can ony secure a 2 bedroom that £113 would reduce to £97.18

My first question is I assume that the 14% deduction is from the 1 bedroom LHA (because I assume as a single man, Im not eligible for the 2 bedroom rate)….is this correct ??

I'm aware I would need to find the shortfall towards the rent. And Im also aware of the local authority discretionary payment which you can claim to help towards that (subject to the local authority having sufficient funds)

My other questions are whilst Im aware I apply for the housing element via my UC account, how long on average does it take for me to receive my first housing element payment ? Do they offer of assistance towards a bond, my mother has offered to give me this money but I just want to know if any other options are available to help towards it?

Sorry for the long post, but since I havent rented now for over 15 years this is all brand new to me. Much advice appreciated in advance.

OverlyAnxious

Hi,

Bedroom tax only applies to social housing (Council or Housing Association etc), not private rentals. You will not have any UC deductions for privately renting a 2-bed property with 1-bed LHA.

The Housing Element of UC is paid at the same time as your normal UC. So it could be up to one month after moving in before you receive the first HE payment. UC do not offer any assistance towards the deposit.