Housing Benefit for housing association tenants
Updated: 22 May 2012
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If you are offered a housing association home, Housing Benefit can only be paid once you have taken up occupation of the property.
I plan to decorate the house before moving in, does this count as occupation?
No, by occupation we mean that you have moved yourself, your family and possessions into the property and you cannot be considered as living anywhere else.
I was waiting on a Social Fund loan, are there no exceptions?
Only if you are disabled, aged over 60 or have a child aged under 5 living with you. If this is the case we may be able to pay you Housing Benefit for up to 4 weeks before you moved in. We cannot pay this until after you have moved in and only then if we are satisfied that the delay in moving was reasonable.
As well as this you must not have been receiving Housing Benefit on any other dwelling and there are conditions as to when you applied for Housing Benefit.
My rent also includes a service charge; can I get Housing Benefit on this?
Yes, provided the service charge is not for things like heating, electricity or meals as everyone has to meet such expenses.
Service charges for things like heating & cleaning communal areas are eligible for Housing Benefit provided that you have to pay these as a condition of occupying the property. We must also be satisfied that the service charge is reasonable.
How will I be paid?
We will make payments to you by cheque. Cheques are valid for one month only and can be cashed at a specified Northern Bank branch. Alternatively you can pay the cheque into your bank account.
I would like my Housing Benefit to be paid directly to my landlord, is this possible?
Yes, if you agree we can make payments of Housing Benefit directly to your landlord. We will also make payments to your landlord (even if you do not agree) if we are notified that you owe more than 6 weeks rent or we think this is in your best interests.
When will the payments be made?
Unless you have been receiving Housing Benefit continuously from before April 1996 the law requires us to make all Housing Benefit payments in arrears. You will receive a payment every two weeks but if payments are being made directly to your landlord these will be issued every four weeks.
If you have been receiving Housing Benefit from before April 1996 we will make payments of Housing Benefit every two weeks in advance.
How soon can I expect payment?
Once we have received all the necessary information from you we should take no longer than 14 days to process your claim. Once this is done payment will be issued subject to the rules on making payments in arrears if these apply to you.
If we are unable to finalise your claim within 14 days and you have provided all the information we need we are obliged to issue a payment on account (or interim payment) to you. This payment does not have to be for the full amount due, it may be smaller to prevent overpayments occurring. If you are overpaid as a result of a payment on account being too high we will always recover the overpayment.
What if my landlord increases my rent?
We reserve the right not to take a rent increase into account if it is unreasonably high or less than 12 months from the last increase.
Where can I get more information?
For more information contact any Housing Executive district office. If you are a private sector tenant living in Belfast you should contact the Private Sector Housing Benefit Unit in Belfast Area Office.
Staff at all our offices will be pleased to help you.
