Rent allowance

Aisling191

Hi, I'm on lone parents and in college full time. I'm living with parents and looking to move out, but it's very expensive. I've applied for a council house but the wait is a good year or so! If I move out will I be entitled to rent allowance?

Rovi

[Midlands mod]

Moved from Offaly forum to State Benefits forum.

[/Midlands mod]

mp22

Contact your local CWO and ask them.

No Pants

I think you have to be renting for at least six months.

clumsyklutz

No Pants wrote: »

I think you have to be renting for at least six months.

I was told this, and went to the local CWO for the original area I wanted to live in, and all he would do was give me numbers for homeless shelters :mad:.

The way I went about it (I was studying in FAS at the time and if you weren't in you didn't get paid!) took around two weeks. It could realistically be done in about a day or two.

Fill out your council housing forms and bring them to your local county council offices housing department, (be prepared for a wait!) and ask them for a letter stating you qualify for rent allowance while you're waiting for a council house. You should get one there and then (though they will ask you for a reason - I was living with a relative and she was kicking me out through no fault of my own - and had nowhere to go to continue my course).

After this you can go to the CWO for the area you want to live in and they will let you know the maximum you can rent up to and the amount you will receive. They will also give you forms to fill out and for your new landlord to fill out (they also pay the deposit for you - or most of it anyway).

Then it's just a case of loooking for places within your price range that accept rent allowance and once you have picked a place it's just a matter of returning the signed forms to the CWO who will then process it and you should be ready to move in.

Hope this helps

oorrccaa

clumsyklutz wrote: »

I was told this, and went to the local CWO for the original area I wanted to live in, and all he would do was give me numbers for homeless shelters :mad:.

The way I went about it (I was studying in FAS at the time and if you weren't in you didn't get paid!) took around two weeks. It could realistically be done in about a day or two.

Fill out your council housing forms and bring them to your local county council offices housing department, (be prepared for a wait!) and ask them for a letter stating you qualify for rent allowance while you're waiting for a council house. You should get one there and then (though they will ask you for a reason - I was living with a relative and she was kicking me out through no fault of my own - and had nowhere to go to continue my course).

After this you can go to the CWO for the area you want to live in and they will let you know the maximum you can rent up to and the amount you will receive. They will also give you forms to fill out and for your new landlord to fill out (they also pay the deposit for you - or most of it anyway).

Then it's just a case of loooking for places within your price range that accept rent allowance and once you have picked a place it's just a matter of returning the signed forms to the CWO who will then process it and you should be ready to move in.

Hope this helps

I have just turned 22 and been thrown out of my house by my parents. The last two days I've been sleeping in my friends house. I won't be allowed for much longer. Can I apply for this? and if I can how long will I be waiting. I don't want to go to a shelter? I am on JSA now but hopefully btea come september.

Should I go to City council first. I'm in Dublin.

clumsyklutz

oorrccaa wrote: »

I have just turned 22 and been thrown out of my house by my parents. The last two days I've been sleeping in my friends house. I won't be allowed for much longer. Can I apply for this? and if I can how long will I be waiting. I don't want to go to a shelter? I am on JSA now but hopefully btea come september.

Should I go to City council first. I'm in Dublin.

I'd say you would most likely get it if you applied. You could start there, ask for their housing department and they'll give you the forms to fill out, fill these out and then bring them back up to the desk (along with a passport/drving licence) and ask them for a letter for rent allowance, explaining your situation.

Best of luck and if you need any more help let me know!

Balagan

oorrccaa wrote: »

I have just turned 22 and been thrown out of my house by my parents. The last two days I've been sleeping in my friends house. I won't be allowed for much longer. Can I apply for this? and if I can how long will I be waiting. I don't want to go to a shelter? I am on JSA now but hopefully btea come september.

Should I go to City council first. I'm in Dublin.

Unless your home is violent or in other ways a danger to you, you should do everything in your power to mend the relationship with your parents. To get Rent Supplement, despite the guidelines saying it is a case of eligibility depending on Local Authority approval or having been renting for 6 months and having been able to afford the rent when the tenancy started and since having suffered a financial downturn such as job loss, the reality is that eligibility on both counts is now routinely required. It is all likely to take a sizeable amount of time and you will likely have started full time studies and you cannot make application for Rent Supplement if you are studying full time (though were you in receipt of rent supplement prior to BTEA you could continue in receipt of it). I don't want to second guess the reason you are out of your home but it would have to be a major issue before the Local Authority would entertain it as reason to put you on the housing list. Perhaps call into a Citizens Information office and make your full situation known and see what they advise and also no harm to do the same thing at the Local Authority office.