Receiving lump sum money and on uni credt

zolashka89
zolashka89 Online Community Member Posts: 2 Listener
edited November 2020 in Universal Credit (UC)
Hello 
just have a quick ish question. 
I recently split up from my husband and living separate for the last year and a bit. I am not a single mum with a 11 year old and on universal credit but my mum is selling her flat overseas (she doesnt live in the uk or british) and she wants to give me and my daughter the money so we can put a deposit down on a house (about 40-50k or more, depends how much the flat sells for). I am planing to use the money 100% solely on a deposit for a house nothing else. Will this affect my universal credit at all? Also another question is if you own your property do you get housing benefit through universal credit? 
Thanks

Comments

  • janer1967
    janer1967 Online Community Member Posts: 21,922 Championing
    Hi and welcome I cant answer the first bit but if you own your own home then you do not get housing benefit as this is for rented housing costs 

    If you claim UC for over 9 months then it may be possible to get help with your mortgage but interest only and this isnt guaranteed 

    Our benefits expert will answer in more detail all your query when they are online 

    @poppy123456 can you help here 
  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Online Community Member Posts: 64,456 Championing
    Thanks for the tag @janer1967

    Hi and welcome,

    Savings/capital of more than £16,000 will end your UC claim as soon as it goes into your bank. My advice to you would be to ask your mum if she can pay the money for the house deposit herself, rather than it be put into your bank first. As you're not selling a house that belongs to you then this money will not be disregarded to allow you to purchase a house.

    Hope this helps.

  • zolashka89
    zolashka89 Online Community Member Posts: 2 Listener
    Thanks for your responses. 
    Will it still count if the money goes to the mortgage people after its entered? 
    Would it not be regarded as ‘reasonable’ thing to buy? 
    Also? If I am not eligible for housing benefit after purchasing or owning a house. Do you think there’s not much point in claiming universal credit as i do work and earn about 1333 a month. 
    Thank you
  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Online Community Member Posts: 64,456 Championing
    edited November 2020
    You're not claiming housing benefit, you're claiming UC which includes the housing element for your rent. They are 2 totally different benefits.

    You won't be entitled to claim for any help with the rent if you buy your own home because you'll have no rent to pay, the house will be yours. If you have a mortgage then to claim for help with this you need to have 9 assessment periods with zero earnings and even then it's just a loan.

    Once the money goes into your bank your UC will end because you'll have more than £16,000. It will not be classed as deprivation of capital if you use it to buy a house. Once your money drops below £16,000 then you'll be able to reclaim UC.

    Whether you'll be entitled to anything at that time without the housing element will totally depend on your circumstances and you'll need to use a benefits calculator to check entitlement. https://www.entitledto.co.uk/benefits-calculator/Intro/Home?cid=3e0ad4df-1390-4b09-aef7-d42075d3dde2

  • Ross_Alumni
    Ross_Alumni Scope alumni Posts: 7,611 Championing
    Just wanted to wish you a warm welcome to the community @zolashka89 :) 

  • Tori_Scope
    Tori_Scope Scope Posts: 12,471 Championing
    Welcome to the community @zolashka89 :) Just to let you know, I've moved your post into our Universal Credit category. I hope the above advice has been useful? How have you been getting on?

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