What does Housing Benefit cover?
Housing Benefit can only be paid for certain parts of the rent, these parts are called eligible housing costs.
These include:
- the rent for the accommodation
- charges for some services, such as a caretaker, communal laundry facilities or play areas.
The amount of rent you pay that covers your ‘eligible housing costs’ is called your Eligible Rent.
What Housing Benefit Does Not Cover
Housing Benefit cannot be paid for:
- water charges
- charges for heating, hot water, lighting, or cooking
- payments for food or fuel in board and lodgings or hostels
Properties rented from Private Landlords and Housing Associations
We refer new claims made by private tenants and Housing Association tenants to the Rent Officer Service which is an executive agency of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM).
The Rent Officer will assess the level of rent on which benefit can be paid. This is called the Maximum Rent.
In order to assess this amount, they will compare the rent that you are paying with rents for similar properties locally. They will also consider whether the accommodation is too large for your needs and, if so, set the ‘maximum rent’ at a level that you would be paying for appropriate accommodation. This does not mean that your landlord will charge you any less, it means that this is the maximum amount that the Council can pay benefit on. You must pay any difference yourself.
If you can’t afford to pay the difference between the actual rent and the amount paid by Housing Benefit, you may have to consider moving to different accommodation. However, you can challenge the restriction of your rent. Contact the Revenues Team for more information.
Claims for people who pay rent to the Council are not referred to the Rent Officer.
Please note: there are different rules for people who are single and under 25 years old see Single Room Rent.
To find out more information about the Rent Officer Service you can contact them at:
The Rent Service
5 Victoria Court
Kent Street
Nottingham
NG1 3LZTel: 0115 8532120
Fax: 0115 8532145
You can also contact us (details below).
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