30 years old and want to look at getting my own place. What is the first thing I need to do ?

Bpositive91

I am 30 years old, I still live with my Mum, I have never lived away from her and despite us getting along well I feel It is time I get my own place and have my independence.  
I feel If I don't do it now then before I know it I will be 35 , then 40 and still living with mum. 
I get anxious when things change and I am very comfortable at home and I feel a bit of a traitor moving out and leaving mum on her own here but I really Feel it's time I do this and live my own life. ( though I will always be there for her ) 

I would appreciate any input on this because as much as I really want my own place I feel really bad about it as though I would be abandoning her or something. We are like best friends and do basically do everything together from dusk to dawn but I Have got to begin now seeing some changes in my life or I feel things will never change. 



I am trying to figure out how do I apply for my first place, I am trying to do it online but it is a bit confusing to me, particularly as I have Dyspraxia. I haven't mentioned this to mum again recently so I am trying to figure it our alone and she will find out as things progress. 


Many thanks everyone

poppy123456

Being young and single it will possibly be very difficult to find anywhere through social housing. Waiting lists are exceptionally long in most areas. No harm in putting your name down on the list for your area. 

You could have a look for a private landlord in the area you want to live but if you will be relying on benefits for help with the rent it won’t be easy to find a landlord that will accept you. A lot of landlords often refuse. You may have a chance if you can get a guarantor. You will need to do some Google searches for your area.
If privately renting and you’ll be claiming help with rent as you are under 35 you will only be entitled to shared rate of local housing allowance. If you’re currently in receipt of either PIP daily living or DLA mid/high rate care then you will be entitled to 1 bedroom rate if LHA. You can the rates for these here https://lha-direct.voa.gov.uk/
It won’t be easy living by yourself especially as the cost of living has risen so high now but it’s doable. 

Bpositive91

poppy123456 said:

Being young and single it will possibly be very difficult to find anywhere through social housing. Waiting lists are exceptionally long in most areas. No harm in putting your name down on the list for your area. 

You could have a look for a private landlord in the area you want to live but if you will be relying on benefits for help with the rent it won’t be easy to find a landlord that will accept you. A lot of landlords often refuse. You may have a chance if you can get a guarantor. You will need to do some Google searches for your area.
If privately renting and you’ll be claiming help with rent as you are under 35 you will only be entitled to shared rate of local housing allowance. If you’re currently in receipt of either PIP daily living or DLA mid/high rate care then you will be entitled to 1 bedroom rate if LHA. You can the rates for these here https://lha-direct.voa.gov.uk/
It won’t be easy living by yourself especially as the cost of living has risen so high now but it’s doable. 

Hello Poppy, great to see you. 

I understand I won't be under a list of priority under my circumstances and it could be a while until I am offered somewhere on the social housing list. 
You say waiting lists can be exceptionally long, what generally could this be between in terms of weeks, months e.t.c. ?
I would like to put my name down anyway but I am finding it difficult to find out how to do it . Please would you send me al ink or direct me to how I could do it ? 

Regarding private Landlords, I have considered this. If I found a landlord who would accept me as a tenant under my circumstances How quickly would I receive the payments to cover the rent from the hosing benefit ?  Also are there are restrictions to how much rent they would give me toward a private tenancy ? Would they pay full rent on a private 2 bedroom house or will I have to pay partially towards it ?

Kind regards 

poppy123456

Waiting lists for social housing could be several years. I just found this link you can put your postcode into this and it will give you information about social housing for your area. https://www.gov.uk/find-local-council Once you put your postcode into it, it will take you to the website for your local Authority and then you'll need to find the information about "housing"

If you privately rented and your PIP included the daily living part then you would be entitled to the 1 bedroom rate of local housing allowance. You can check what that is here https://lha-direct.voa.gov.uk/ click on the link, put the postcode of the area you want to live in and select "how many bedrooms you are entitled to" which is one.

Please also be aware that you would need to claim Universal Credit for help with any rent (unless living in temporary or supported living) If you claim UC then any Income Related ESA you're claiming would end.

With regards to your benefits best thing to do is if you find somewhere to live, post back here and someone will advise you further.

Tori_Scope

I can see that poppy123456 has already provided you with some useful advice @Bpositive91, which I hope has helped to remove some of those uncertainties around housing and benefits.

I just wanted to pick up on what you said about how you're feeling about the idea of moving out. Particularly what you said around feeling anxious, and like you'd be abandoning her. It's perfectly normal to feel anxious about moving away from home, so you're not the only one to feel that way. Have you spoken to your mum about how she'd feel about you moving out, and shared your concerns over any negative feelings she might be having about it? 

Bpositive91

poppy123456 said:

Waiting lists for social housing could be several years. I just found this link you can put your postcode into this and it will give you information about social housing for your area. https://www.gov.uk/find-local-council Once you put your postcode into it, it will take you to the website for your local Authority and then you'll need to find the information about "housing"

If you privately rented and your PIP included the daily living part then you would be entitled to the 1 bedroom rate of local housing allowance. You can check what that is here https://lha-direct.voa.gov.uk/ click on the link, put the postcode of the area you want to live in and select "how many bedrooms you are entitled to" which is one.

Please also be aware that you would need to claim Universal Credit for help with any rent (unless living in temporary or supported living) If you claim UC then any Income Related ESA you're claiming would end.

With regards to your benefits best thing to do is if you find somewhere to live, post back here and someone will advise you further.

Hi, sorry for the long delay. 

I will click the link and have a look , I tried already but it won't let me proceed ands shows an error message I don't know why because it won't specify what error. I will try again on another device.   

Also, when you mentioned if I get PIP I am entitled to apply for a 1 bedroom property, isn't a 1 bedroom property the least someone can apply for anyway regardless of PIP ? sorry I am sure I mis reading it 

I receive ESA, do you mean if I want to get my own place that I would need to stop claiming ESA and that I would need to claim UC in order for my rent to be paid ? 

thank you.

Bpositive91

Tori_Scope said:

I can see that poppy123456 has already provided you with some useful advice @Bpositive91, which I hope has helped to remove some of those uncertainties around housing and benefits.

I just wanted to pick up on what you said about how you're feeling about the idea of moving out. Particularly what you said around feeling anxious, and like you'd be abandoning her. It's perfectly normal to feel anxious about moving away from home, so you're not the only one to feel that way. Have you spoken to your mum about how she'd feel about you moving out, and shared your concerns over any negative feelings she might be having about it? 

Hi, yes she has and I appreciate her help , yours ,and that of everyone else.

I haven't spoke with my mum about how I would feel about moving out , I feel mostly  anxious about it but also some excitement because it would be a big and long overdue achievement for me. 

poppy123456

Bpositive91 said:

Also, when you mentioned if I get PIP I am entitled to apply for a 1 bedroom property, isn't a 1 bedroom property the least someone can apply for anyway regardless of PIP ? sorry I am sure I mis reading it

If you're privately renting that will be the most you'll be entitled to for help with any rent. https://lha-direct.voa.gov.uk/

You can have as many bedrooms as you want but you will need to pay the extra rent yourself.

Bpositive91 said:

I receive ESA, do you mean if I want to get my own place that I would need to stop claiming ESA and that I would need to claim UC in order for my rent to be paid ? 

Yes, that's correct unless you're living in Supported or temporary housing.

When you claim UC any Income Related ESA you're claiming will end. If you're in the Support Group when you claim UC then you'll be entitled to the LCWRA element from the start of your claim.

Best thing to do is if you find somewhere post back here for advice and someone will advise you.

Bpositive91

poppy123456 said:

Bpositive91 said:

Also, when you mentioned if I get PIP I am entitled to apply for a 1 bedroom property, isn't a 1 bedroom property the least someone can apply for anyway regardless of PIP ? sorry I am sure I mis reading it

If you're privately renting that will be the most you'll be entitled to for help with any rent. https://lha-direct.voa.gov.uk/

You can have as many bedrooms as you want but you will need to pay the extra rent yourself.

Bpositive91 said:

I receive ESA, do you mean if I want to get my own place that I would need to stop claiming ESA and that I would need to claim UC in order for my rent to be paid ? 

Yes, that's correct unless you're living in Supported or temporary housing.

When you claim UC any Income Related ESA you're claiming will end. If you're in the Support Group when you claim UC then you'll be entitled to the LCWRA element from the start of your claim.

Best thing to do is if you find somewhere post back here for advice and someone will advise you.

Hi, thanks for that information.

Will I be automatically transferred to UC from ESA if I got a place of my own or would I have my ESA stopped and would have to apply from beginning for UC ?  Also if transferred would the UC be the same amount as ESA ?

I am wondering  and depending on the answer I receive if it would potentially be better for me to wait a little longer as apparently everyone on ESA and any other allowances  will be moved across to UC by 2024. 

Thank you again.

poppy123456

No one is automatically put on UC, you will need to claim it yourself. 

If you loved by yourself and needed to claim help with the rent then you would have no option but to claim UC, unless it’s supported/temporary housing, as advised.

Bpositive91

poppy123456 said:

No one is automatically put on UC, you will need to claim it yourself. 

If you loved by yourself and needed to claim help with the rent then you would have no option but to claim UC, unless it’s supported/temporary housing, as advised.

So If I currently wanted to get my own place then I  would have to cancel my ESA and I won't receive any sort of payments  until the UC claim is approved ?  

I think it might be best in that case if I wait until the transition from ESA to UC is in place, which I believe the deadline for that is 2024 nationwide ?

poppy123456

Bpositive91 said:

poppy123456 said:

No one is automatically put on UC, you will need to claim it yourself. 

If you loved by yourself and needed to claim help with the rent then you would have no option but to claim UC, unless it’s supported/temporary housing, as advised.

So If I currently wanted to get my own place then I  would have to cancel my ESA and I won't receive any sort of payments  until the UC claim is approved ?  

I think it might be best in that case if I wait until the transition from ESA to UC is in place, which I believe the deadline for that is 2024 nationwide ?

No, that’s not correct. If you claim UC then your ESA would continue for 2 weeks. You would not need to cancel your ESA. 

Your first UC payment would be 4 weeks and 6 days after you first claimed. 

The aim for all legacy benefit claimants to be transferred across is 2024. Whether that will be achieved remains to be seen. 

If you find a place to live then you can post back here for further advice. 

Luchia

Social Housing you would have a very long wait if they even offered you anything at all.
It would depend on the banding you was given, anything below a C band your looking at several(10+) years to never unfortunately, Even with C band it can take several years.

To get C or above you have to meet very strict criteria, as you currently have somewhere to live and aren’t at any risk the chances of getting higher than D Band would be very low.

You could look into private renting, a lot of landlords won’t accept people on benefits but a handful do with a guarantor(Possibly your Mum if she would be willing to do it).