Tenant asking to go on Rent Allowance

Hi,
I relocated with work 9 months ago and I rented out my house. The tenants are in the house 6 months. They are a couple with their son and his girlfriend. They all work in fulltime jobs. They have now informed me that 1 of the parents has lost their job so they want to go on Rent Allowance.
I know nothing about the implications of allowing them to go on rent allowance. Can anyone outline the implications? It seems unfair that only one has lost a job but they still want to get rent allowance.

Also, I need to get an accountant to sort out any tax implication. If I am recieving €800pm in rent, how much tax am I likely to have to pay?

If only one of the couple has lost their job and the other is still working full-time (30 hrs pw or over), then they won't qualify for Rent Supplement. Even if the other person doesn't work full-time, they may not qualify based on the household income (including the son) and the rent paid compared to the maximum rent limit for the county & family size.

I would demand that they continue to pay you the full rent monthly, and not let it slide while waiting on a decision - there can be a backlog on decisions so you could find that several months go by before they're advised that they're not eligible, and you're out of pocket.

You will have to sign the application forms (or if you have appointed an agent, he/she can sign) as part of the tenant's application, and, you must supply your PPSN, which is recorded and sent to Revenue each year along with the amount of Rent Supplement paid.

As you're receiving Rent at the moment, have you not sorted out any tax issues already?

re the tax issues, if you haven't registered with PRTB yet, do so immediately or mortgage interest will not be deductible when calculating your tax liability.

Other than that you have until end October to submit return for 2010.

The issue for me would be can they can afford the house now. If they can't and don't get RA, they will fall into arrears which they won't be able to pay back. It would be a mistake to let the rent slide while they come to realize this and you end up picking up the tab.

So insist on them paying the rent regardless. So they don't fall into arrears. This might help them get their head straight on if they can afford it or not.