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Dealing with Rent arrears
Your rent is considered as a priority debt because if you do not pay, your landlord could apply to the courts and evict you from the property, leaving you homeless.
If your arrears have occurred because you are waiting to have a Housing Benefit claim to be sorted out, you should explain this to your Housing Benefit office and ask for an interim payment of Housing Benefit or seek professional advice as soon as possible.
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When should I contact my landlord?
Immediately! It is never too early or too late to contact your landlord to make an arrangement to pay your arrears. Where possible, you should complete a personal budget to support the offer you are making – if you are feeling overwhelmed and cannot face contacting your landlord, then you should seek professional advice straight away – for more information on where to get advice, please click here.
How much will I have to pay?
There is no set amount, however you will usually have to offer an extra monthly payment to clear your arrears, while also maintaining the regular rental payments to keep the arrangement going. If you are cannot afford to clear the arrears within the time suggested by your landlord, explain why not and start paying an amount which you can afford.
If you are receiving either Income Support or Income-based Job Seekers Allowance you can have a standard amount deducted from your benefit. This will be paid directly to your landlord to ensure that your rent arrears are paid. Your nearest Citizens Advice Bureau will be able to tell you the current figures and the maximum amount that can be deducted from benefit.
You can also use these amounts as a rough guide of how much to offer if your income is around the benefit level – however, if your income is a lot higher than this, then you will probably have to offer more money to pay your arrears, and there is no set formula of what will and will not be accepted by the lender.
If you are receiving any other form of welfare benefits, such as the Contribution-based Job Seekers Allowance, deductions can only be made from your benefit in certain circumstances, so seek advice.
Housing Benefit
If you rent your home, you should check whether you are eligible to claim Housing Benefit. This will reduce the amount of rent that you will have to pay in the future or it could even pay your entire rent amount. Making a claim for Housing Benefit may make your landlord more willing to agree to your offer.
Housing Benefit can be paid directly to your landlord to ensure regular repayment – for more information on how to claim Housing Benefit you should speak to your Local Authority (council), your Jobcentre Plus office, or your nearest Citizens Advice Bureau – alternatively, please click here for more information.
If any arrears have arisen because of delays in making your Housing Benefit claim, you should seek professional advice immediately.
What if my landlord won’t agree to my offer?
If your landlord refuses to accept your offer of repayment because it’s too low, start paying what you can afford (which should be the normal rental amount, plus an amount towards the arrears).
This will help if you have to go to court, as it shows that you are willing to try and repay the debt, and your creditors will always prefer to receive some form of payment (no matter how small) than none at all.
In most cases, you cannot be evicted without your landlord first obtaining a court order. If your landlord threatens to throw you out without going to court or harasses you to make you leave the property you should seek professional advice immediately – for more information on where to get advice, please click here
What if my landlord takes me to court?
If your landlord applies to the County Court to repossess your home, this does not mean that you will be automatically evicted. If you can show the court that you will be able to clear the arrears within a ‘reasonable period’ (which could be between 2 and 12 months and possibly more), the court may allow you to stay in the property – although there are no guarantees.
If you have been given a date for a court hearing, or if you have already been to court and you are finding it difficult to keep up the payments which the court as ordered you to pay, keep paying as much as you possibly can comfortably afford and seek professional advice as soon as possible – for more information on where to get professional advice please click here
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