Benefit information for private landlords

Housing benefit is a social security benefit which helps people on low income to pay their rent. It is also known as ''rent allowance'' or ''rent rebate''

Who can claim?

Generally anyone who is liable to pay rent for the property in which they live can claim, including boarders. There are some exceptions and the most common examples are;-

Non commercial lettings
Most students
Tenants who live with the landlord and are a close relative
Tenants or their partners if they are responsible for the landlords child
Tenants who owned the property within the last five years

Who cannot claim Housing benefit?

Tenants cannot usually get housing benefit if they:

Live with and pay rent to a close relative
Used to live with their landlord as a member of their family
Are renting a home they used to share with their ex-partner
Are responsible for their landlord's child
Used to own the property which they now rent
Live in the home as part of their job
Live in a care home; or
Are a full time student

How is housing benefit worked out?

The amount of Benefit depends on four main things;-

How much money the claimant and any partner have coming in
How much savings they have
Personal circumstances including people living in the household and set criteria about the number of bedrooms your tenants household needs
The Maximum rent for the property as determined by the Rent Service.

How can my tenant make a claim?

If your tenant claims Income Support (IS), Job Seekers Allowance (JSA) or Employment and Support Allowance (ESA), a claim form will be included in the claim pack.

If your tenant applies for Pension Credit (PC) by phone, they will be asked if they want to claim Housing benefit (HB) and council tax benefit (CTB). The advisor will take the details for the HB/CTB claim and will then forward the claim to us.

A claim can be made direct to the council by contacting our benefits service using the contact details on the left hand side of this page. Alternatively they can download an application form from our related downloads section Housing benefit - application form.

Print an application form, complete and return to the address on the left.