Hello ev1
My name is Donna and i am in urgent need of advise regarding housing and the new changes in housing benifit !
I am currently living in a private rented property the rent is £450 p/m £350 of that was covered by housing benifit and i recieved a top up covering another £50 and i paid the remaining £50 myself my Landlord has been in contact with the council who have told her she can get £530 p/m paid to her by the benifits agency but not for tennants that already live there meaning me i myself have spoke to to the council who have said the same the only way around this is for me to come off of benifits for about a month and them make a reclaim wich i cannot afford to do i have 3 children 1 of which has severe heart problems ! theres just no way i can do it. My landlord has now given me 2 months notice wich came into effect on 5th june i have spoken to the council to citizens and my landlady to try and reason but to no avail she is apparantly in every right as my tennancy had ended on 5th june and there was no law saying she had 2 renew it !!!
I am worrying myself sick here im hunting the internet day and night to try and find accomodation for me and me 3 children every house i see or inquire about either dont take dss or is a dump site please can any one either give advice on what else to try or know of anyone who has any propertys to rent in s2 preferably wybourn/manor/arbourthorne i know these are not desirable areas but this is where my family and support is which is essential with my daughters condition.
I dont know if writing this will help but im stuck and cant think of anything else !!! i only have until he 6th aug :help:

Also why is it that most landlords are unwilling to accept dss surely its the safest option if payments are made directly to them ok there may be a wait for them to start but they do eventually get there. We dont all choose to be on benifits i have no choice i worked from the age of 15 up until i had my daughter 3 years ago !!!

This sounds like an unintended consequence of the change from housing benefit to local housing allowance.

http://www.sheffield.gov.uk/your-city-council/your-housing-and-council-tax-benefit-service/local-housing-allowance

You should contact all the housing associations in Sheffield.

http://www.sheffield.gov.uk/in-your-area/housing-services/housing-aid/looking-for-a-home-or-needing-to-move/housing-association-accommodation


The area’s you want to live in are not high demand areas and you may well get a nice housing association property with security of tenure that you won’t get in the private sector.

You should also go to Howden house and present as homeless. If the worst comes to the worst they should be able to put you in temporary accommodation while you wait for a council property.

They will also be able to put you in touch with the Housing Solutions team. One part of this team work with private landlords to get them to accept housing benefit and who’s properties adhere to certain standards, so might be able to put you in touch with landlords who have suitable properties in the areas that you want and who accept LHA.

As to why Landlords don't accept Hosing benefit, traditionally it has paid lower rates than the rents landlords wanted, has taken ages to be paid and exposes landlord to risk as it can be reclaimed if the tenant claims fraudientley.

LHA is new but it looks like it will be paid at highter rates than Housing Benefit. However, LHA must be paid to the tennant unless there are special circumstances which puts the onus on claimants to pay their rent. We'll have to see how sucessfull that is.

thankyou for your reply amy i am currently on the homeless register but as far as i know they dont supply temporary accomodation anymore just put you in to a hotel or bedsit iv been in one of these before after an house fire they are not the cleanest and best of places for kids to be in especially one who is prone to illness so im trying my best to avoid that route !
I have been in contact with private rented solutions they have assured me if i can find an house they will put up the bond and give refrences etc ....
I have been on the waiting list for a council house for at least five years and bidding as got me no where im also registered with parkhill HA and northern counties.
I really have tried every avenue i could possibly think of my last resort is to post this message and hope someone has another option.
thankyou for taking time out to reply xxxx

When I was talking to a contact at the HB office I use when discussing tenant claims he explained that if I wanted to increase my tenants' rent to a similar figure to that of the new LHA the tenant would need to end their claim for 1 week before reclaiming, at which point they would be awarded the new LHA. If I were you I would make contact with Housing Aid to see if they can advise you on how best to handle this.

http://www.sheffield.gov.uk/in-your-area/housing-services/housing-aid/private-tenants

In my experience they are very good and offer real help on dealing with housing matters.

Unfortunately I have no properties available now so can't offer you more pratical assistance.

The Homeless section do still offer temporary accomodation. You might have to go into a B&B initially but they are not allowed to keep children in B&B's for very long. I know It's not an ideal situation but at least you and your children wouldn't be on the streets - or in a B&B for very long.

Also, there are a lot of other housing associations than the two you mention. Look on the list i provided a link to. Off the top of my head Yorkshire Metropolitan have properties in the areas you want.

like amyvictoria says, a b&B/ hostel might not be a fantastic place, but it would be a roof over your head, which is a bit better than no roof at all, and a step on the ladder to a property throughan HA or the council.

I don't know how the rules have changed, or which parts of the legislation have done so, but there was a system under HB rules where you could get something of a discretionary top-up, toward the excess, if you were paying more than you could afford. I don't know if it's available since the changes?

Hi Donna
I have just emailed your opening post to the Rt Hon. Caroline Flint - minister for housing. I guess this was a completely futile exercise but made me feel better anyway. All local councillors and MP's would do well to be members of this forum. They could learn more in an hour than all their 'research assistants' could brief them on in a month.

Its right what people say about local housing allowance and hb. People are getting used to it but basically if you have a substantial change of circumstances or start a new claim as such then you will be on the new local housing allowance.

Its worth checking out the website below to calculate the size property you are entitled to and then the local housing allowance for your local council.

https://lha-direct.therentservice.gov.uk/Secure/LHASearchIntro.aspx

With regards to council and having temporary accommodation duties sounds like they would if you were homeless due to your children. The rules to do with B&B's are these should be a last resort and then at the very most 6 weeks. If you need accommodation in a specific area then any accommodation offered has to be suitable, however not always easy to challenge especially accommodation whilst they are investigating into your homelessness.

Try not to worry too much and make sure you get someone to confirm your notice is valid and explain the procedure, Im sure CAB or Housing Options at the council but if not you could ring Shelters Helpline 0808 800 4444.

Good luck!