The New Bedroom Tax

Lord Bracknell · Mar 14, 2013

There must be thousands of one parent families where both ex-partners keep a spare bedroom (or two) for those occasions when their kids stay over with the "absent" parent.

Any absent parent on housing benefit will find that this arrangement will be very costly from April.

St Patricks Day · Mar 14, 2013

Lord Bracknell said:
It's the council that pays out housing benefits, reclaiming the costs from the government. All the government needs to do is to cut its grant to the council and leave the council to deal with the benefit cut.

I see where you're coming from and say it's about time. The government are hacked off seeing immigrants moaning their house isn't big enough so get a mansion in Westminster and that what got the ball rolling. They can't single out immigrants so applied it to all. Am I right?

wellquickwoody · Mar 14, 2013

hova said:
So familys get paid more in benefit because of the size of the house they live in?

No, but they will be given less in benefit if that space is more than they really need.

Notice what I did there by changing 'paid' to 'given'?

moggy · Mar 14, 2013

skipper734 said:
It's only Housing Benefit Claimants that are affected. Say you are single and receive housing benefit for a two bedroom flat, you will receive 14% less Housing Benefit than you receive at the moment, as you only need one bedroom.
If there are two of you, and are a married couple, in a three bedroom house or flat same applies, except the money you don't receive is 25% less.
It's more of an attempt to lower rental rates to Landlords and the benefit bill, rather than an attack on the starving claimants. Mind you I couldn't see much wrong with the Community Charge either.

Therein lies another problem. The council lowering the rental to landlords.
I have a rental to a housing benefit single woman with three small children.
I've received a letter stating they're dropping the monthly rent.
So now I will be serving notice and they're be left having to re-home another family through their great idea of cuts and stealth taxes

Uwinsc · Mar 14, 2013

seagullsovergrimsby said:
I think special circumstances apply and there will be an exemption in these cases.

There wasnt going to be any exemption for them but I know after a lot of protests it's has been back under discussion this week so hopefully there will be.

wellquickwoody · Mar 14, 2013

moggy said:
There was an interview with someone like that I saw a few months back

Exactly, a few months back, keep up if you will.

beorhthelm · Mar 14, 2013

clippedgull said:
Erm, that's not correct at all. It doesn't affect pensioners. Only working age people.

mores the pity. dont see why pensioners should be exempt, as long as suitable accomodation can be provided to down size into.

moggy said:
There's a reported 16,000 people on the Brighton and hove housing waiting list, is this the governments fix for that problem?

have you heard of any other ideas?

clippedgull said:
Indeed.

Case in point.

A friend of mine was in a two bedroom property receiving £91 per week housing benefit. He has just moved pending the 'bedroom tax'. He now lives in a one bedroom privately rented flat and receives £149 per week housing benefit!!

theres a bigger picture though, the cost of a private 2 bed flat is greater than the 1 bed, so someone with a kid can move in to the social housing an there's a net saving.

clippedgull · Mar 14, 2013

beorhthelm said:
theres a bigger picture though, the cost of a private 2 bed flat is greater than the 1 bed, so someone with a kid can move in to the social housing an there's a net saving.

Yes, of course that's something I hadn't considered.

St Patricks Day · Mar 14, 2013

Think the Goverment are doing it because of these reason so need to include everyone.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2215069/Abu-Hamza-wife-Najat-Mostafa-given-boot-1m-bedroom-council-house.html

wellquickwoody · Mar 14, 2013

Mind you, a 14 % reduction in housing benefit when living in a council/ association provided home which is bigger than your needs, still.means that you get bloody cheap housing when compared to everyone else!

skipper734 · Mar 14, 2013

moggy said:
Therein lies another problem. The council lowering the rental to landlords.
I have a rental to a housing benefit single woman with three small children.
I've received a letter stating they're dropping the monthly rent.
So now I will be serving notice and they're be left having to re-home another family through their great idea of cuts and stealth taxes

But she receives the housing benefit, not you as the Landlord. It's up to her if she wants to find the difference, and pay you as her Landlord.

moggy · Mar 14, 2013

skipper734 said:
But she receives the housing benefit, not you as the Landlord. It's up to her if she wants to find the difference, and pay you as her Landlord.

Actually, housing benefit pay me direct, however, going by theses new rules, three young girls and the mother, in a 3-bed house, is that too big for her?

Lord Bracknell · Mar 14, 2013

hova said:
I see where you're coming from and say it's about time. The government are hacked off seeing immigrants moaning their house isn't big enough so get a mansion in Westminster and that what got the ball rolling. They can't single out immigrants so applied it to all. Am I right?

No. Except to the extent that there is undoubtedly some sort of prejudice flying around government circles that is targeting particular perceived "problems", without any attempt to work out what the consequences might be on people who aren't being "targeted".

The last-minute back-tracking is pathetic. Why the hell didn't they realise earlier, for example, that this hare-brained scheme would hit the families of serving soldiers?

Deleted member 22389 · Mar 14, 2013

Why are we in the mess, that's right the stupid government at the time allowed millions of people to roll up in this country, with no plans for building extra homes. Now we have a shortage.

wellquickwoody · Mar 14, 2013

moggy said:
Actually, housing benefit pay me direct, however, going by theses new rules, three young girls and the mother, in a 3-bed house, is that too big for her?

Oh! Poor you! Not having the taxpayer (me) guaranteed to pay your buy to rent mortgage for you.

clippedgull · Mar 14, 2013

moggy said:
Actually, housing benefit pay me direct, however, going by theses new rules, three young girls and the mother, in a 3-bed house, is that too big for her?

So how is she going to be affected? Are the council saying she is under-occupying? What ages are the children?

moggy · Mar 14, 2013

wellquickwoody said:
Oh! Poor you! Not having the taxpayer (me) guaranteed to pay your buy to rent mortgage for you.

It's not a buy to let mortgage, but ok, I'm sorry me and thousands of other private landlords are letting to the DHSS.
Lets all pull out and see how that would affect the 16,000 people already on the Brighton and hove housing list

e77 · Mar 14, 2013

As with a lot of Conservative/Coalition ideas there is a germ of a good idea that gets lost in implementation. I agree they need to start freeing up social housing stock but the following should have been thought of:

Households with any disabled people in should either be assessed on a case by case basis
People can't have their housing benefit cut until offered suitable smaller accommodation

moggy · Mar 14, 2013

clippedgull said:
So how is she going to be affected? Are the council saying she is under-occupying? What ages are the children?

The children I believe are between 3 and 7 years old. I'm not obviously privy to her dealings with the housing benefit or council. I just received a letter saying the rent was being reduced. I presumed it was because of this occupancy ruling

seagullsovergrimsby · Mar 14, 2013

bashlsdir said:
Why are we in the mess, that's right the stupid government at the time allowed millions of people to roll up in this country, with no plans for building extra homes. Now we have a shortage.

I think you'll find it was the stupid government prior to that one who let people buy their council houses without thinking about the consequences for future generations needing social housing.

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