Information about Housing Benefit for Landlords

Housing Benefit for Landlords

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Housing Benefit?
How is a claim made?
What tenancy information is needed?
How much housing benefit will be paid?
How is Housing Benefit paid?
How long is housing benefit paid for?
What can a landlord expect of this Council?
What does the Council need from the landlord?

If you are a landlord or landlady or prospective landlord or landlady wishing to rent out property, you may have tenants entitled to help from their local council towards paying their rent.

Should a tenant make a claim for this help, called Housing Benefit, they will normally ask you for some simple information about the tenancy.

This explains how Housing Benefit is calculated, what information the tenant will be asked for and what information you will need to provide in order that an assessment of the level of Housing Benefit payable can be made.

What is Housing Benefit?

Housing Benefit gives help towards housing costs for people on a low income or those who receive Income Support or Job Seekers Allowance.

How is a claim made?

A claim is made by completing a Housing Benefit claim form 782.26 KB Adobe Acrobat Format

A tenant does not need to tell you that they have claimed benefit. The Council can only discuss a benefit claim with a landlord if the tenant has given his or her permission for this to be done.

What tenancy information is needed?

In addition to proof of income, every applicant for Housing Benefit must provide the following details:-

Date the tenancy started
Date the tenant moved in
Rent Charged
Number of rooms in the property
Rooms occupied by the tenant
The name and address of the landlord
A tenancy agreement or a letter from the landlord which should show the date the tenancy began, the amount of rent charged and any services included in the rent (such as heating, meals etc)

How much housing benefit will be paid?

Almost all claims for Housing Benefit are referred to the Rent Officer for a decision on a reasonable market rent for the property.

Rent Officers are employed by the government to help the Council work out how much Housing Benefit a tenant can have.

If a rent is considered to be unreasonably high, then the amount of Housing Benefit paid could be restricted. Housing Benefit may also be restricted because a tenant is living in a property which is larger than needed.

For example, a couple with one child needs only two bedrooms, so their Housing Benefit may be restricted to the level for a two-bedroom house and not the three-bedroom house they actually occupy.

The following criteria are used when deciding whether a property is or is not overlarge.

One bedroom is allowed for each of the following:-

A married or unmarried couple
A single person aged 16 or over
Two children under 16 of the same sex
Two children under 10
A child under 16
Please refer to the Housing Benefit Office for more information about these criteria

Housing Benefit cannot be paid for that part of the rent which covers services such as water rates, fuel costs or meals.

The costs of these items are deducted from the rent payable before Housing Benefit is calculated.

For example:-

Actual rent charged - £70.00
Water Rates - £1.00
Fuel - £5.18
Part-Board - £10.80
Eligible rent for Housing Benefit £53.02

The remaining figure is called the Eligible Rent.

A person who receives Income Support could be entitled to their full eligible rent. A person not on Income Support but on a low income will receive only part of the eligible rent.

Housing Benefit is always paid on a four-week cycle. If a calendar monthly rent is charged, the appropriate weekly rent will be calculated and then paid on the usual four-week cycle.

For instance:-

Rent Charged : £350 per calendar month
Multiplied by 12 months : £4200 per year
Divided by 365 days : £11.506 per day
Multiplied by 7 days : £80.55 per week

So, if a tenant is entitled to full Housing Benefit they would expect to receive £322.20 every four weeks, which is 4 x £80.55 weekly rent.

How is Housing Benefit paid?

Housing Benefit is paid every four weeks, in most cases 4 weeks in arrears.

Housing Benefit is paid to the tenant unless a rent direct form is completed, in which case the benefit will be paid to the landlord. Payment can be made by either BACS directly into your bank account or by a cheque crossed "account payee".

If the Housing Benefit is paid to you as the landlord you will also receive a schedule showing which tenants' Housing Benefit are included in the cheque and how much benefit is in respect of each tenant.

How long is benefit paid for?

All benefit claims are reviewed at least once a year. Benefit will continue as long as there is entitlement and providing the claim review form is returned on time.

Housing Benefit is only paid while a tenant lives in the property. Entitlement to benefit ends as soon as a tenant leaves the property. This condition also applies if a tenant dies, as entitlement ends on date of death.

Entitlement may continue during a temporary absence from home.

If a tenant moves out or dies and you have been paid Housing Benefit beyond your tenant's change of address or death, then you will have been overpaid. You will have to repay this money.

There may be times when the Housing Benefit Office finds out a tenant has left before you do. Housing Benefit will still end on the date the tenant is known to have left - any further rent due is a matter for you to pursue with your tenant.

What can a landlord expect of this Council?

We will :-

Pay Housing Benefit promptly, normally within 14 days of receiving all the information needed to process a claim
Make payments four-weekly while a tenant is entitled to benefit
Advise the landlord if the tenant has asked for payments to the landlord to stop
Only discuss a tenant's benefit entitlement with the landlord if the tenant has given permission
Notify a landlord promptly if there is an overpayment of benefit

What does the Council need from the landlord?

Accurate information about the tenancy details including the start date, rent charged and any services provided
Prompt information regarding tenants moving out
Recognition by the landlord that the tenancy agreement is with the tenant. If there are difficulties with payment of rent, the landlord's first point of contact is the tenant
Prompt repayment of overpaid Housing Benefit
Liaison with the Benefits office prior to instigating any court/eviction proceedings

For further information please contact

Contact Information
Send us a Message	Revenues Division Exchequer and Support Services Tameside MBC Council Offices Wellington Road Ashton under Lyne Lancs OL6 6DL View local map
0161 342 3708
0161 342 2676/2012
Customer Service Centres

Page last updated: 21 October 2008