issue 38 - Eastlands Homes

Money Matters
Under Occupation
Do you have a spare bedroom? Do you receive Housing Benefit? If
your answer is yes to both these questions and you are of working
age, it is likely that from April 2013 your Housing Benefit will be
reduced.
From April 2013 your Housing
Benefit will be reduced if you
have more bedrooms than your
family needs. The government
uses the “National Bedroom
Standard” to define the number of
bedrooms you need. According
to this standard:
• Two children of the same sex
can share a bedroom until the
age of 16
• Boys and girls can share a
bedroom until the older child’s
tenth birthday
• A couple (aged 16 or over) who
live together as partners should
have their own room
• A single person aged 16 or over
should have their own room
• A non resident overnight carer
should have their own room
IF YOU OR YOUR PARTNER IS
OF PENSIONABLE AGE, THIS
DOES NOT APPLY TO YOU.
Eastlands Homes has over
1,500 customers that could be
affected by these changes and
Right to Buy –
Think before you buy
we will be writing to and visiting
these customers over the next
six months to offer advice and
assistance on a whole range
of money matters and housing
options.
For further information please
contact Eastlands Money Matters
Team or our Housing Options
Officer, Ashleigh Hogan by
phoning Eastline or visiting your
local Eastlands Homes reception.
If you have lived in your
home for more than five
years you will be eligible
to buy it at a discount,
so long as you can prove
that you can afford the
mortgage payments. The
amount of discount you
can get depends on how
long you’ve been a tenant.
Unless you can buy your home
with cash, you'll need to get
a mortgage from a bank or
building society. Loan companies
operate in our areas that offer
loans to customers but the
interest rates are much higher.
Customers wishing to exercise
the ‘right to buy’ or ‘right to
acquire’ should always get
independent advice. You can get
free independent advice from
The Money Advice Service by
ringing them on 0300 500 5000.
When thinking about taking out
a mortgage you should make
sure you will have enough
money to pay your mortgage
each month and other bills like
buildings insurance, Council
Tax, utility bills, etc. You will
be responsible for repairs and
maintenance to your home and
if you buy a flat, you’ll probably
also have to pay a ‘service
charge’ towards the upkeep of
the whole building and repairs.
The value of your home can go
down as well as up and if you
don’t pay your mortgage you
could lose your home.
The government revived
the Right to Buy scheme for
council tenants (and Housing
Association tenants with a
preserved right to buy following
a stock transfer) from 2 April
2012.
For further information please
contact the Money Matters Team
or Eastlands Homes Right to Buy
Team on 0161 276 7362.
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