How do I deal with benefit cap on single parent with 4 kids?

Mick 100% behind you on this ??

Hi first post.
Is this page to complain about tenants unable to pay or genuinely help tenants out? I hope it's not how to get rid of your tenants!!
I have been a tenant of an Housing Association for 21 years in the same house. We was the first to experience the new housing benefit cut of 7th November 2016. So I don't work due to anxiety frequent migraines etc and have always thanked myself lucky to have financial help from my Government. My wife works each dinner hour at the local school of which our benefits are reduced by 7.24 per week so she only gets paid for 4 days per week(first boo boo of said Government)!! No wonder there's some who don't wanna work. Then you get the real benefit criminals of the type you see on Channel 5 who blatantly flaunt what they get and what they spend it on. It's us honest claimants with 4 or more kids who are suffering!! Try and explain to your 17yo that the only home she as only ever known is at risk of being taken away.
So we was getting 89.00 per week awarded for rent this was reduced by 12.35 early 2016. We struggled to pay the 12.35 but managed. Now the new cap puts our HB down to 50 pence per week....yes that's right basically we have to pay it all or out on our arses. Then there's the anti benefit squad who feel we have had it coming and deserve what we get. Sorry but would you like me to hand back 2 of my children?!?! Cancel any contracts I may have taken out when we was a bit more comfortable!! Be told it's what some earn in a year so be thankful.
NO No NO....more like the Government have finally realised we the claimants have to help the foreigners out. I know many East Europeans work but they need some extra help financially for the others. So 88.50 per week off me will go a long way!! Don't take my word for it check out what all the charities are saying about the sudden rise in homelessness. Even Duncan Smith is backtracking on the policy he started...Labour are challenging it but Mrs May don't care.
Personally I agree with the cuts and have said as much but where a draw a line is the shear severity of the cut. 88.50 we find and we pay it for as long as we can. But now I have to go court for non payment of mobile and landlines! ! Sorry I had to cancel some contracts judge.
They want us to survive JUST!! Exist on what we have and pay our rent with other monies promised weekly.
Last 7 weeks 3 families are made homeless on my street alone...guess who is living in them houses now? Syrian and 2 Polish families!! That is the secret that has to come out. Check the facts of homeless children then check how many foreigners are taking over these tenancies. Makes me mad I have to point it out.
Thanks for any of you who have taken the time to read just one experience. Marcus.

Reply to the comment left by "Marcus Altham" at "23/01/2017 - 14:34":

Hi Marcus, I've messaged you on Facebook with my contact details. Would really like to speak to you. Thanks, Bethan

I saw on the news today a £26,000 benefits is equivalent to earning a £35,000 a year salary.
I know very few people that earn that amount of money a year.
The government always say pay your rent or mortgage as a priority. Yet when they have brought in these cuts they have taken it form the housing benefit which as we have read hear is causing major issues.
The government don't want the press printing stories saying my kids are starving because the government took the money to feed and cloth them.
Much better head line Landlords take my benefits for rent so I cant feed my kids.
Housing benefit can only be claimed if the was rent due to a landlord. So why do the benefits office think it is ok for tenants to spend this money on anything other than rent. To me it is fraud.
If the person claims to be single and is not the benefit office say that is fraud and prosecute. Or work when the claim they don't but claim benefits it is fraud. So if one claims housing why is that not the same.

Landlords have to buy the houses and pay for them with new tax changes just wait to see how hard it will be to get a house then on benefits. Last week was the first time I turned down housing benefit tenant.
I was hit with two cases due to benefit gap first family of 5 government expects me to rent 3 bed property for £48 a month. The tenant does understand they are due to pay the rent short fall.
Case 2 A 72 year old pensioner £1.99 a week rent. I informed the housing office they need to arrange a £600 a week old folks home.

Everyone thinks Private landlords make a fortune and rip of tenants. My rents are on par with housing associations and our local housing executive (Council Housing).
Housing associations get grants, Low interest rates loans land for free to name but a few perks so why are there rents not less then mine.

In addition most are registered as charities so are exempt tax. Just look at the 6 figure salaries there chief execs and directors receive.

I work very hard to give my tenants decent house and keep them maintained.

I'm seeing this homelessness on ground level too.

Yes get in there Marcus with Bethan. We aren't having enough tenants shout loud enough.

Well said Neil on the explanations of where are these tenants gonna' go?

Reply to the comment left by "tony tony" at "21/01/2017 - 11:02":

There is no way round the benefits cap from within the benefits system that I have heard of.

It seems that you need to put on your professional head and let them stay if they pay rent or evict them if they do not pay rent. Either way, it will take quite some time to settle the situation. If you feel inclined, you could show compassion by paying them to leave without fuss.

Reply to the comment left by "Marcus Altham" at "23/01/2017 - 14:34":

Hi Marcus

Thank you for sharing your personal experience and opinion. As someone who is affected by the cuts to Housing Benefit (via the Benefit Cap), to the extent that you will struggle to pay your rent and may end up being evicted, I am bewildered to read your comment that "Personally I agree with the cuts and have said as much". Do you mean that you want everyone else's Housing Benefit to be cut (but not yours), or that you agree that your Housing Benefit should be cut down to £0.50 per week? How will you manage to pay your rent?

Bearing in mind that you are in highly subsidised social housing, i.e. taxpayers money was probably given to your housing association so that they could build/buy housing to provide at a low rent, (so the rent you pay is not the true cost of providing the housing), how will tenants of private landlords (who are charged a rent that reflects the true cost of providing the housing) cope with the Housing Benefit cuts?, will they manage to avoid eviction when they only get £0.50 per week? If you agree with the Housing Benefit cuts (Benefit Cap), then surely you are agreeing to the evictions of thousands of families! Sorry, I may feel powerless to prevent such widespread homelessness, but I sure as hell don't agree with it!

As for foreigners getting the housing when British families are evicted, that is perhaps because they can pay the rent because they are working, I don't know, but what I do know is that they are not just being given them, they have to pay for them the same as British households do.

Reply to the comment left by "Marcus Altham" at "23/01/2017 - 14:34":

Hi Marcus

As previously stated on this thread there are ways of avoiding the Benefit Cap imposed through Universal Credit.

Firstly could your wife get a job working more than 16 hours a week for example?

You mention you have four kids, the eldest being 17, can you look after the remainder of the children?

If you can't then there are certainly other Disabled benefits, e.g. PIP, that are outside the cap?

I am sympathetic, but only to a point, since you mention families being evicted in favour of foreign nationals, those families often live by their means and don't expect the "lifestyle" many UK nationals expect whilst being on benefits? Do they expect to run a car, have the latest gadgets, holidays etc..

Living on benefits should never be a lifestyle choice, except for those Disabled and unable to work.

You mention that you lose benefits when your wife works, actually you'll find UC is less punitive than the old regime and encourages claimants to work.

Jobs are plenty in this country, the problem is many feel that those jobs are beneath them? Send me the first part of your postcode and I'm sure I can send you a link to many jobs requiring no experience other than a willingness to learn, the desire to do a good job, and to be a friendly face.

The landlords on this forum are as opposed as you are to UC, it's an administrative nightmare since benefits are no longer payable to the landlord. Leading to arrears and even more evictions.

You mention you are already in social housing, you already one of the lucky ones not having to find somewhere to live in the Private Rented Sector (PRS).

Those professional landlords, as well as those trying to supplement their income, are genuine decent people trying to do the right thing. But at the end of the day this is their livelihoods as well.

No one here woke up with a property portfolio, they have scrimped and saved, working hard to get where they are today.

Landlords are being attacked from all sides, stopping first time buyers getting on the ladder, fleecing the poorest etc..

We already are heavily taxed, that tax burden is increasing all the time. You buy a house and pay Stamp Duty, whatever you pay we pay an extra 3% of the purchase price. Most landlords are having to cope with tax relief being drastically reduced on Mortgage costs, and soon to come in is a ban on charges to Tenants.

So perhaps rather than thinking what the government can do for you, perhaps think what you and your wife can do for your family?

Sorry if that sounds tough, but it's the reality these days!

the most sensible thing imo is that the housing benefit should not of been touched , and any cap should of been taken direct from the claiment , that way there would not be familys getting evicted and the claiment would have to learn to cut down there spending ,but at least they would have a roof over there heads . why cant the goverment see that

Reply to the comment left by "Ian Clifford" at "23/01/2017 - 22:36":

well said--i think the Singapore system should be studied/implemented