Help with your rent

Need help with your rent or mortgage payments? Fear not: here are a few ways of securing financial help.

Social fund - help with rent in advance

The social fund is a system by which people on low incomes may receive payments and discretionary grants or loans for needs that cannot be met from their regular income. Payments are made by Benefits Agencies. If you are leaving residential or institutional accommodation, need help to stay in your own home, have had an unsettled way of life, or are facing exceptional pressure, you may be able to get a Community Care Grant.

Social fund payments are often very hard to get but it is still important to apply. If you are turned down you have a right to a review where the decision may be overturned. You may receive a budgeting or crisis loan instead of a grant. Remember that if you are offered a loan you will have to repay it from your weekly benefit. Contact an advice agency for help with claiming a grant or appealing against a decision. For further advice contact your local Citizens Advice Bureau or housing advice centre.

Housing benefit

Housing benefit (HB) is money which enables people on low incomes to pay their rent. You can claim HB if you are 16 or over and whether or not you are working or claiming income support. It is not available to full-time students, unless they have children or a disability.

To get HB you need to fill in an application form which you can get from the council. Each council deals with HB claims for its area. The council has a duty to make a payment of HB within fourteen days provided they have received all the information and paperwork requested. They will need to see proof of all your income and savings as well as a copy of your tenancy agreement.

Your age, the number of people in your household, the rent you pay and your income, will also affect the amount of HB you will receive. It will not cover charges in your rent for water rates, heating or hot water.

If the rent you pay is high, then the housing benefit section of the council may restrict the amount of money you receive. Always ask the council to assess the maximum rent they will cover for a property (called eligible rent) in advance of signing an agreement. If your housing benefit does not cover your rent, get advice.

Income support/mortgage interest run-on-help with mortgage payments

If you receive income support you will be entitled to help with your mortgage repayments. However this help will be restricted to half the interest for the first 16 weeks and if you took out your mortgage after October 1995 you will receive no help for the first nine months of your claim. Payments are made direct to your mortgage lender.