Tenants switching to rent allowance- advice?

L

lisette

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My parents are current leasing a house to a young couple who have been living in the house for about 3 months now. The couple have just informed my parents that they are going to be applying for rent allowance and are on a waiting list for social housing.
This is the first time my parents have leased a house, so needless to say, they have no idea what implications(if any) this has for them? Is there anything they need to do? I don't know how best to advise them.

Also the woman has asked for a letter stating that it is just her living in the house. My immediate reaction when my dad told me about it was to say no- the lease is signed by both of them. But, again, my knowledge of this area is limited.

Hopefully someone here can help us out!
 
It would be folly to write a letter to a legal authority such as the local council which the writer knows to be untrue, especially when the untruth is designed to defraud.
 
The tenants will be given an application form for Rent Supplement, and part of that form must be completed by the landlord (either one of your parents can sign). The landlord must also supply their PPSN or Tax Reference Number as part of the application. The form will also ask if there are multiple names on the lease or tenancy agreement, and as oldnick said, it is best to give accurate information regardless of what the tenant has requested.

There is a maximum rent limit in place for persons applying for Rent Supplement - if the rent exceeds the amount for the county and family size, rent supplement is unlikely to be granted. Your parents might be asked by the tenants to reduce the rent if it exceeds the limit.

Are the couple renting an entire house (3 or 4 bed?) - they may be considered over-accommodated, which might also lead to refusal of Rent Supplement.

Depending on the area, there can be a delay in processing Rent Supplement applications. Your parents should be very careful in letting the rent "slide" during this time - especially if there's a possibility of the supplement being refused.
 
lisette, oldnick and gipimann have given you very good advice here. Do not sign anything that is misrepresenting the situation as you know it in regards to the occupants in the house. I do not know where the house is or the current rent. Be careful of the situation that will occur between the current renting arrangement and waiting to get the new arrangement set up. If any rent arrears builds up it will be very difficult to get the arrears paid off if they qualify for rent allowance. You will need to monitor the situation closely. How long was the original lease set up for. You will be able to figure out from the attached link what rent allowance is for your area. Copy and paste.
http://www.citizensinformation.ie/e...ementary_welfare_schemes/rent_supplement.html

If you have any further queries refer back to this section
 
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