Social welfare claimant. Buying a house

soccercrew

A friend of mine has been on social welfare for over 10 years although she's been working here and there on x/os while she hasn't been pregnant a few times. She's 3 kids and will be coming into money soon and is considering buying a shell of a house that's for sale near to her. The house is going for 30k and she might be able to buy this outright when her money comes through and she's wondering is there any loans out there for people on SW for finishing the house. She's thinking maybe if she buy this, takes out a 15k loan then she'll lessen the burden for the state paying rent allowance for her and she'll also own her own home instead of renting rest of her life.

Someone mentioned a council mortgage but TBH, she's never heard of such a thing before and is sceptical they even exist and if they did, would one have to be working to avail of it.

SarahMollie

Not to say I know for an absolute fact, but knock me over with a feather if there is a bank out there willing to lend €15k to someone on welfare.

Pretty sure the state have enough worries without coming up with loan schemes like that.

RossieMan

Is getting a paying job not a possibility for her?

She's get a loan much easier with regular funds. Any institution would be mad to give out that kind of loan without some sort of income.

van_beano

If she owned the house straight out couldn't she get a secured loan of €15k on the strength of the house as collateral? Just like a mortgage, not sure if such a small amount can be obtained through this method though.

ED E

Won't whatever dividend she's receiving nuke her dole anyways?

Water John

Thought there was a scheme of joint ownership with the local authority.
That might be worth investigating. you own one part and rent the other part from the LA. Check with housing section of LA.

Atlantic Dawn

ED E wrote: »

Won't whatever dividend she's receiving nuke her dole anyways?

Not if she uses it straight away to buy a house to live in.

The_Conductor

Water John wrote: »

Thought there was a scheme of joint ownership with the local authority.
That might be worth investigating. you own one part and rent the other part from the LA. Check with housing section of LA.

The property has to be habitable, and of minimum standards- you can't just buy a shell of a house as a doer-upper- and imagine the council will step in and buy half it off you........

The_Conductor

Atlantic Dawn wrote: »

Not if she uses it straight away to buy a house to live in.

However- it has to be a habitable....... the OP has stated the house that they are talking about, is not.

Water John

May be a bit of thinking outside the box, would make it habitable.
Friends, charity shops, St Vincent De Paul.
It depends how far off it is.
I admire the person for striving to better themselves.

It wasnt me123

Go to your local Credit Union - they'll hold the deeds as security

m'lady

It wasnt me123 wrote: »

Go to your local Credit Union - they'll hold the deeds as security

I could be wrong but I heard that a credit union will never use your house as any type of security/collateral?

It wasnt me123

m'lady wrote: »

I could be wrong but I heard that a credit union will never use your house as any type of security/collateral?

Not true of my local credit union. €15k is less than some car loans, they will have no problem lending it but the interest rates are high.

m'lady

It wasnt me123 wrote: »

Not true of my local credit union. €15k is less than some car loans, they will have no problem lending it but the interest rates are high.

They probably all differ, as I said I was told they'd never use your home as collateral, but will offer a secured loan (based on your savings) where the interest is relatively low..

PaulKK

I'll state the obvious here.

Shell of a house + 15k will not make it habitable.

She will need substantially more than that to make this a runner if the house is indeed a shell.

soccercrew

PaulKK wrote: »

I'll state the obvious here.

Shell of a house + 15k will not make it habitable.

She will need substantially more than that to make this a runner if the house is indeed a shell.

3 bed semi-d. Next door was bought for 31k and builder finished inside for 20k.The shell is plastered and painted outside and has all external doors/windows. This girls boyfriend is a handyman/small builder and should finish it for 15k or less. Her brother is a plumber. Cousins are plasterers and her father is a carpenter. She will certainly finish this house for 15k or less

RossieMan

Where did she get 15k from while on the dole if ya doing mind me asking?

I'm working and can't save 200 a month without giving something up. And I don't drink or smoke.

soccercrew

RossieMan wrote: »

Is getting a paying job not a possibility for her?

She's get a loan much easier with regular funds. Any institution would be mad to give out that kind of loan without some sort of income.

Single parent but willing to work but not much about for now

soccercrew

ED E wrote: »

Won't whatever dividend she's receiving nuke her dole anyways?

I think there's a limit to savings one is aloud to have while on welfare. I think its something like 24k or there about and for every 10k over that, you lose a tener of your dole.

cerastes

RossieMan wrote: »

Where did she get 15k from while on the dole if ya doing mind me asking?

I'm working and can't save 200 a month without giving something up. And I don't drink or smoke.

That answers itself, you're not on the dole. I'm not saying everyone on the dole is cleaning up, but there are some who need it to make ends meet, and Ive seen some turn up in new cars?

soccercrew wrote: »

A friend of mine has been on social welfare for over 10 years although she's been working here and there on x/os while she hasn't been pregnant a few times. She's 3 kids and will be coming into money soon and is considering buying a shell of a house that's for sale near to her. The house is going for 30k and she might be able to buy this outright when her money comes through and she's wondering is there any loans out there for people on SW for finishing the house. She's thinking maybe if she buy this, takes out a 15k loan then she'll lessen the burden for the state paying rent allowance for her and she'll also own her own home instead of renting rest of her life.

Someone mentioned a council mortgage but TBH, she's never heard of such a thing before and is sceptical they even exist and if they did, would one have to be working to avail of it.

Maybe I'm missing something, but if shes on the dole, how is she working?
and whats x/os?

soccercrew

goz83 wrote: »

Does your "friend" mind you coming on here telling the internet her business? Wouldn't take much to match up a property prices for 3 bed ghost estate shells selling around 30k and then matching up a single mum if three with a carpenter daddy and plumber brother who is coming into some cash.

Yes, she asked me to see if I could find out anything on the internet.

It ain't no ghost estate as such. The estate is finished and the end 5 houses just need sold. Nice quite area in very small town only 9 mins away from the capital of the county.

<mod snip>

ShaShaBear

cerastes wrote: »

That answers itself, you're not on the dole. I'm not saying everyone on the dole is cleaning up, but there are some who need it to make ends meet, and Ive seen some turn up in new cars?



Maybe I'm missing something, but if shes on the dole, how is she working?
and whats x/os?

It's casual working, where the regularity and payment of your work is very low, Social Welfare cover the shortfall. Xs and Os refers to the docket you fill out, where you mark what days you worked/did not work.

ShaShaBear

soccercrew wrote: »

Yes, she asked me to see if I could find out anything on the internet.

It ain't no ghost estate as such. The estate is finished and the end 5 houses just need sold. Nice quite area in very small town only 9 mins away from the capital of the county.

As for your post, are you drunk because its hard to understand!

It makes perfect sense. As in you have issue with people asking where she got her lump sum from, but you seem to have no issue giving out more than enough information for someone to identify your friend.

soccercrew

cerastes wrote: »

That answers itself, you're not on the dole. I'm not saying everyone on the dole is cleaning up, but there are some who need it to make ends meet, and Ive seen some turn up in new cars?



Maybe I'm missing something, but if shes on the dole, how is she working?
and whats x/os?

She's not working! She has worked before but now she's 3 kids and one is a young baby so can't Work. X/os is working but you've to fill in your hours for the dole because its not full time job.

Del2005

It wasnt me123 wrote: »

Not true of my local credit union. €15k is less than some car loans, they will have no problem lending it but the interest rates are high.

A car they'll have a chance to reprocess if payments aren't made. It'll cost more than 15k to reprocess a house so I doubt a loan would be given with deeds being used for collateral. If they were working then an unsecured loan might be offered.

mickdw

soccercrew wrote: »

3 bed semi-d. Next door was bought for 31k and builder finished inside for 20k.The shell is plastered and painted outside and has all external doors/windows. This girls boyfriend is a handyman/small builder and should finish it for 15k or less. Her brother is a plumber. Cousins are plasterers and her father is a carpenter. She will certainly finish this house for 15k or less

Is it bare blockwork internally and lacking all plumbing, electrics, insulation etc?
If so, you are dreaming even if all labour was 100 percent free.
On the other hand, if it's to a stage where it's skimmed and rads are plumbed and working and power is on, you might have a chance.
Recently spent 12k getting a finished 5 bed house ready to rent. That covered budget carpets. Decent bathroom tiles, 3k kitchen plus white goods. and budget new furniture. That house was a finished house with doors and skirting installed and all toilets installed and working, heat on, power on etc.

soccercrew

mickdw wrote: »

Is it bare blockwork internally and lacking all plumbing, electrics, insulation etc?
If so, you are dreaming even if all labour was 100 percent free.
On the other hand, if it's to a stage where it's skimmed and rads are plumbed and working and power is on, you might have a chance.
Recently spent 12k getting a finished 5 bed house ready to rent. That covered budget carpets. Decent bathroom tiles, 3k kitchen plus white goods. and budget new furniture. That house was a finished house with doors and skirting installed and all toilets installed and working, heat on, power on etc.

Next door was plastered out, plumbing, painted, 2nd hand kitchen, free bathroom suite, lino, doors,skirting, stairs carpeted,laminated flooring in living room. No insulation in attic but the house owner will be upgrading this himself when he can afford it.

pablo128

soccercrew wrote: »

3 bed semi-d. Next door was bought for 31k and builder finished inside for 20k.The shell is plastered and painted outside and has all external doors/windows. This girls boyfriend is a handyman/small builder and should finish it for 15k or less. Her brother is a plumber. Cousins are plasterers and her father is a carpenter. She will certainly finish this house for 15k or less

soccercrew wrote: »

Single parent but willing to work but not much about for now

She's not a single parent so. And if she is (caught) co-habiting with the boyfriend in the new house, she will lose some of her entitlements. Not that it particularly bothers me, but she should be aware of this.

soccercrew

pablo128 wrote: »

She's not a single parent so. And if she is (caught) co-habiting with the boyfriend in the new house, she will lose some of her entitlements. Not that it particularly bothers me, but she should be aware of this.

What you talking about cohabiting? Who even mentioned that!

How is someone not a single parent if they have a boyfriend? You've confused me or rather your confused. I know plenty of people who have boyfriends and girlfriends who live separately and have kids. Just because someone is dating and has kids doesn't mean they are shacked up together. I think you've had to much of the black stuff today.

This internet is some craic I tell ya. Someone comes here looking advice to better ones situation legally. Also wants to take the strain of the tax payer and here we now have her cohabiting and losing her entitlements Lol. Crazy!

stoplooklisten

Word of warning, stay clear of builders who will promise things too cheap, for instance, a plaster that goes from not knowing how to skim to setting up their own plastering business within 11 months

The_Conductor

Guys- I've just deleted a whopping 18 posts in this thread.
Please read the forum's charter- *and abide by it*.
If you disagree with what another poster posts- either refute it factually or report it so the moderators can take appropriate action. The amount of back seat moderating, back seat stabbing, random mischief making, trolling, uncivil behaviour- and bad manners displayed in this thread- are simply breath taking.

I'm leaving this thread open for now- but abide by the forum's charter- or suffer the consequences.

I've issued 2 infractions alongside warnings- to various people here- if you weren't one of them- its not a get-out-of-jail-free card- this is a warning to cop the hell on.

wokingvoter

Getting a loan of that amount from anywhere when she has no job will involve steep repayments and if she's relying on SW benefits then she could find herself in trouble pretty quickly
I would agree with others that suggested that she would be better of if a family member could loan it to her or even borrow it for her to pay back.
A proper legal contract should be drawn up though to protect both borrower and lender
Surely the grandparents of her children are interested in a permanent roof over their grandkids heads?

MouseTail

The only options I see here is family stepping in or a CU loan. In order to get a CU loan she would need a savings record with them and savings to leverage against the loan. Is the house habitable at all, could she move in and do it up bit by bit?

meeeeh

Does she have money for property tax and maintenance cost? If washing machine breaks it will be her who will have to pay. 15k isn't much to finish the house. Also is cost of sale budgeted for? Legal fees , surveyor etc.

Villa05

SarahMollie wrote:

Not to say I know for an absolute fact, but knock me over with a feather if there is a bank out there willing to lend €15k to someone on welfare.

<MOD SNIP >
I know of a person that got 130k for a mortgage in the early noughties who was on social. The funny thing is that the loan is up to date and performing.

It wasnt me123

She could also try her local county council - they lend to people on low incomes, they also do renovation loans, normally to upgrade older homes with new windows, insulation, doors, etc. She might also qualify for grants as she's on a low income. I know SEI do an insulation grant, for walls and attic; I've heard of a grant for windows as well, might be county council, but she'll need to google it. Its very doable if she does her homework and sees what's available. Good luck, wish I had that opportunity.

Water John

123, the LA is the road to go. Really, every help and encouragement should be afforded, to anyone seeking to improve their lot. I accept the need to be realistic, but posts here sticking negative obstacles in the way, contributes nothing.
If you have a good elected councillor, they could steer you in the right direction. They are often very helpful.

Pinkycharm

Credit Union will give you a loan, go in and talk to them. By the way it's very possible to buy a shell of a house for 30k and do it up. I bought a house for 31.5 and I put 20k into it and was able to sell it for 90k two years ago as a deposit for a bigger place. I wasn't on the dole but needed off the rental market.

meeeeh

Water John wrote: »

123, the LA is the road to go. Really, every help and encouragement should be afforded, to anyone seeking to improve their lot. I accept the need to be realistic, but posts here sticking negative obstacles in the way, contributes nothing.
If you have a good elected councillor, they could steer you in the right direction. They are often very helpful.

That is nonsense. It's trying to be realistic. It is not just getting a loan, it's being able to pay off loan and have the money for all necessary maintenance and cost that comes with owning a house. If washing machine breaks it's another 300+ on top of I would guess 300+ monthly loan repayment. (i doubt loan term she could get would be much more than five years). On social welfare that is a lot. I know current rental market is insane but owning a house can get people in a lot of financial hardship.

And btw we built our house, 15k doesn't stretch far.

Nomis21

Atlantic Dawn wrote: »

Not if she uses it straight away to buy a house to live in.

Really? Do you have any reference for this information?

When is straight away? It can take several months to buy a property.

20K allowance for savings on JA, but only 5K on rent allowance before payments are affected.

aido79

soccercrew wrote: »

A friend of mine has been on social welfare for over 10 years although she's been working here and there on x/os while she hasn't been pregnant a few times. She's 3 kids and will be coming into money soon and is considering buying a shell of a house that's for sale near to her. The house is going for 30k and she might be able to buy this outright when her money comes through and she's wondering is there any loans out there for people on SW for finishing the house. She's thinking maybe if she buy this, takes out a 15k loan then she'll lessen the burden for the state paying rent allowance for her and she'll also own her own home instead of renting rest of her life.

Someone mentioned a council mortgage but TBH, she's never heard of such a thing before and is sceptical they even exist and if they did, would one have to be working to avail of it.

Your friend needs to plan and research this very carefully if she is going to do it. Personally having done something similar with a house last year I don't think it can be done on the budget you have mentioned. My plumbing alone cost me 15k although I would imagine it was a bigger house. The last thing your friend needs is to spend 45k on a house that is not habitable and have all of her money plus the money she borrows and needs to make repayments on tied up in something that she can't live in.

riclad

Average time to buy a house is 2 months,
she can save money .
buy some materials on adverts.ie ,
or in macs warehouse dublin.
50 per cent off normal retail price.
http://www.macswarehouse.ie/
eg i get pvc doors and windows on adverts ie,
eg 1 door and frame 8x5ft approx pvc 150euro,.
as new condition,never used .
they sell new unused doors, pvc windows in macs warehouse ,
i presume its older stock from builders or shops that closed down.
people on welfare are allowed to work 2days a week.

Nomis21

riclad wrote: »

Average time to buy a house is 2 months,
she can save money .
buy some materials on adverts.ie ,
or in macs warehouse dublin.
50 per cent off normal retail price.
http://www.macswarehouse.ie/
eg i get pvc doors and windows on adverts ie,
eg 1 door and frame 8x5ft approx pvc 150euro,.
as new condition,never used .
they sell new unused doors, pvc windows in macs warehouse ,
i presume its older stock from builders or shops that closed down.
people on welfare are allowed to work 2days a week.

People on Welfare can work three days a week and will only get paid by JA for the three days they don't work. Sundays are free.

m'lady

Nomis21 wrote: »

People on Welfare can work three days a week and will only get paid by JA for the three days they don't work. Sundays are free.

As far as I know that Sunday rule was got rid of a good while ago.. I could be corrected though.

aido79

aido79 wrote: »

Your friend needs to plan and research this very carefully if she is going to do it. Personally having done something similar with a house last year I don't think it can be done on the budget you have mentioned. My plumbing alone cost me 15k although I would imagine it was a bigger house. The last thing your friend needs is to spend 45k on a house that is not habitable and have all of her money plus the money she borrows and needs to make repayments on tied up in something that she can't live in.

If she has family members to do the work for free it will make a massive difference. They will also be able to gather up bits and pieces from other places they work for the different trades. Pipes and brackets, off cuts, joints etc for plumbing. Electrical bits and pieces for electrical work. furniture, kitchens etc can be bought second hand for small enough money. You never know a carpenter in the family fitting a new kitchen for someone could be told to take away the old one for free or anything which she could use.

It wont be a luxury home but you will put together something liveable for a lot less than you would think if the labour is free and you have people in the trade sourcing stuff. It might not be the short cuts or way you or I would want a place done but it is doable.

aido79

Hendrix Short Something wrote: »

If she has family members to do the work for free it will make a massive difference. They will also be able to gather up bits and pieces from other places they work for the different trades. Pipes and brackets, off cuts, joints etc for plumbing. Electrical bits and pieces for electrical work. furniture, kitchens etc can be bought second hand for small enough money. You never know a carpenter in the family fitting a new kitchen for someone could be told to take away the old one for free or anything which she could use.

It wont be a luxury home but you will put together something liveable for a lot less than you would think if the labour is free and you have people in the trade sourcing stuff. It might not be the short cuts or way you or I would want a place done but it is doable.

I like your optimism but have you ever been involved in anything like this or have any experience in the construction/finishing of a house? Building materials are quite expensive and it would be very difficult to just pick up enough material to finish the house. Furniture and stuff like that really are the least of her worries. The carpentry work won't be a problem but the electrics and plumbing need to be done by properly qualified people who may not want to do this work for half nothing. I had family members and friends working on my house too and I definitely got some surprises with costs along the way that I wasn't expecting.
Also depending on when the house was built there may be a need to incorporate some sort of renewable energy such as solar or geothermal energy to satisfy building regulations.

aido79

aido79 wrote: »

I like your optimism but have you ever been involved in anything like this or have any experience in the construction/finishing of a house? Building materials are quite expensive and it would be very difficult to just pick up enough material to finish the house. Furniture and stuff like that really are the least of her worries. The carpentry work won't be a problem but the electrics and plumbing need to be done by properly qualified people who may not want to do this work for half nothing. I had family members and friends working on my house too and I definitely got some surprises with costs along the way that I wasn't expecting.
Also depending on when the house was built there may be a need to incorporate some sort of renewable energy such as solar or geothermal energy to satisfy building regulations.

Worked for a builder for years during college mostly getting materials from the hardware and delivering to sites (not small vans of stuff either tractor and full lowloader a lot of the time) so I know the costs and they are high but if you have it down to bare essentials and have siblings who will work for free in the evenings etc (who lets be honest will do it for free for someone who can't afford it) you could get a lot done for 15k.

It really depends on what is done already I will admit that but the suggestion appears to be that its not a builders finish but that there is some work done on wiring, plumbing etc.

It might not be the short cuts you or I would want to take but for some they will be willing to have a mismatch of stuff in order to keep costs down.

aido79

Hendrix Short Something wrote: »

Worked for a builder for years during college mostly getting materials from the hardware and delivering to sites (not small vans of stuff either tractor and full lowloader a lot of the time) so I know the costs and they are high but if you have it down to bare essentials and have siblings who will work for free in the evenings etc (who lets be honest will do it for free for someone who can't afford it) you could get a lot done for 15k.

It really depends on what is done already I will admit that but the suggestion appears to be that its not a builders finish but that there is some work done on wiring, plumbing etc.

It might not be the short cuts you or I would want to take but for some they will be willing to have a mismatch of stuff in order to keep costs down.

The house is a shell. The OP said it has been plastered and painted on the outside. To me a shell means bare walls on the inside so no electrical or plumbing even started apart from the possibility of some pipes installed in the floor for radiators. All of this work will need to be done as well as plastering/slabbing and painting and doors installed just to get the house to the most basic of standards.
As I have already said I have recently finished a house that was at this stage when I bought it and she will be calling in an enormous amount of favours to get it finished for 15k including legal and other fees such as architects etc.