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Renting apartment while on dole

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  • 24-04-2010 2:54am
    #1
    Corholio
    Registered Users Posts: 14,014 ✭✭✭✭


    Ive been unemployed for 7 months having finished college. I am 26 and currently living with parents. I have been strongly considering moving out because it definitely isn't fair on them at my age to have me living there. I have been looking for cheap enough apartments, the cheapest I can find really.

    I have a fair bit of money saved from work and a little from money left over from the dole last few months. What is everyone's opinion of me doing this?

    Also what change would this make to my dole claim? I am of course looking for work and have been shot down on quite a few attempts already. I am just wondering if I do happen to be still on the dole will this change my claim?

    I know i'll have to give them change of address etc but will it effect my payment? I know you can only get Rent Allowance after being in rented accomodation for 6 months so im not worried about that for a while.

    Thanks to anyone who can give me opinions on this.


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    #2
    Goldenquick
    Registered Users Posts: 228 ✭✭Goldenquick


    Are you sure about the 6 month rule? I don't see anything on the website about that. If you write to the address below they will help you or ring them on the LoCall no.

    It won't make any change to your dole claim by moving out, your payment will still remain the same but remember you can only claim job seeker's benefit for 12 months.
    :)
    Rent Allowance Section
    Social Welfare Services
    Government Buildings
    Ballinalee Road
    Longford
    LoCall: 1890 927 770


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    #3
    tenchi-fan
    Closed Accounts Posts: 3,339 ✭✭✭tenchi-fan


    I was renting a room (house share) in Dublin on a low wage a few years ago.
    Rent, ESB, broadband, bin charges, TV licence (only joking), food, mobile phone, and those random expenses that crop up when you least expect them.

    And job-hunting has some pretty high costs too.. broadband and phone charges are unavoidable, stamps envelopes and paper will cost you money, the bus fare or taxis to get to wherever the interview is, etc. I know you have some savings but you'll find they'll dry up pretty quick if you rent an apartment by yourself.


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    #4
    niallo27
    Registered Users Posts: 16,024 ✭✭✭✭niallo27


    Well if you have no job, and your giving a few quid to your mother for digs, i dont see much wrong with you living at home


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    #5
    rightwingdub
    Registered Users Posts: 725 ✭✭✭rightwingdub


    Corholio wrote: »
    Ive been unemployed for 7 months having finished college. I am 26 and currently living with parents. I have been strongly considering moving out because it definitely isn't fair on them at my age to have me living there. I have been looking for cheap enough apartments, the cheapest I can find really.

    I know i'll have to give them change of address etc but will it effect my payment? I know you can only get Rent Allowance after being in rented accomodation for 6 months so im not worried about that for a while.

    Thanks to anyone who can give me opinions on this.

    There are people in their early 30's who have had to move back home to live with their parents, a mate of mine who's 31 has had to move back home because they he was made redundant, then again if you are moving out I think you would be better off moving in with people, do you have friends who are looking for a room to rent at the moment?


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    #6
    patrickk
    Closed Accounts Posts: 240 ✭✭patrickk


    head out west go camping thats what i did during summer when on dole in past


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    #7
    eth0_
    Registered Users Posts: 10,846 ✭✭✭✭eth0_


    patrickk wrote: »
    head out west go camping thats what i did during summer when on dole in past

    And what did you do when the dole officer came knocking at your address while you were off camping?


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    #8
    tenchi-fan
    Closed Accounts Posts: 3,339 ✭✭✭tenchi-fan


    patrickk wrote: »
    head out west go camping thats what i did during summer when on dole in past

    You have to collect your dole weekly now! No more lazy summers, you need to make a journey to the post office once a week! The horror!


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    #9
    ricman
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1,559 ✭✭✭ricman


    YOU get no rent allowance if your rent is over x amount ,i doubt if you find an apartment under the ra limit, so its just get a flat/ bedsit or else forget about it.Thats assuming you could find an apartment owner that takes rent allowance clients, which is unlikely unless you are a single mother.
    WE are in an economic crisis ,your parents should let you stay there for the moment .I,VE never heard of some1 on the dole claiming from a rented apartment.About 50 per cent of landlords will not take ra clients .
    YOU might be lucky and find a nice flat under the limit that accepts rent allowance,if you want
    privacy.You are not allowed to top up the rent with savings, over the limit =zero rent allowance.
    YOU can acess broadband at librarys free, buy a laptop for 150, on adverts.ie


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    #10
    Victor
    Registered Users Posts: 78,385 ✭✭✭✭Victor


    It would be rather difficult to pay rent on €196/week. To get rent allowance, you would need a good reason to be moving out, e.g. the place you are living is over-crowded. Even then, you might be able to rent a room, but unlikely to be able to have a place of your own.


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    #11
    ricman
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1,559 ✭✭✭ricman


    The max rent you can pay on rent allowance for a single person non sharing
    is 122euro in dublin.Thats not enough for even a 1 bed apartment,go for a flat ,or some type of shared accommodation.
    See here http://www.welfare.ie/EN/Schemes/SupplementaryWelfareAllowance/Pages/RentSupplement.aspx#Rates3
    shared limit is 92 for shared accommodation.
    I think there,s some rule re you need to be living there for 6 months to be eligble for rent allowance.I,M not sure about that.


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    #12
    vicecreamsundae
    Registered Users Posts: 793 ✭✭✭vicecreamsundae


    i've been wondering about this myself.
    i have been unemployed and living with my parents since last June. I am going to be starting a masters in Dublin in September and i think i should qualify for rent allowance then, as i'll HAVE to move. i plan to move into a houseshare of course, doubt i could afford my own place! though i am pretty worrried about finding a place that will accept rent allowance.
    also i'm hoping to move up sooner, like around june/july. partly because i am going insane in this ****hole town where there is nothing to do and nobody to hang with [whereas as i know loads of people back in dublin] but also because there is no point in me looking for work here when i will be moving, and if i moved to dublin in early summer i could try to find a job which i could potentially keep part time throughout the masters.

    i plan to call into the social welfare office on monday to ask about this stuff, but i'm kind of worried now about how someone mentioned needing to be renting for six months before getting rent allowance, i have other friends that moved out while on the dole and this wasn't the case for them.


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    #13
    gurramok
    Closed Accounts Posts: 13,992 ✭✭✭✭gurramok


    Its a new rule vicecreamsundae introduced in the last yr or two.

    http://www.citizensinformation.ie/categories/social-welfare/social-welfare-payments/supplementary-welfare-schemes/rent_supplement


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    #14
    eth0_
    Registered Users Posts: 10,846 ✭✭✭✭eth0_


    vicecreamsundae wrote: »
    I am going to be starting a masters in Dublin in September and i think i should qualify for rent allowance then, as i'll HAVE to move.

    You can't keep receiving unemployment benefit or get rent allowance if you're going back to full-time education...


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    #15
    ztoical
    Registered Users Posts: 4,788 ✭✭✭ztoical


    eth0_ wrote: »
    You can't keep receiving unemployment benefit or get rent allowance if you're going back to full-time education...

    If they are going back on a back to education scheme like Vetos they can keep some benefits like rent allowance.


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    #16
    ztoical
    Registered Users Posts: 4,788 ✭✭✭ztoical


    ricman wrote: »
    I,VE never heard of some1 on the dole claiming from a rented apartment.

    Did that line make sense to anyone else? Surely you'd have to be in a rented accommodation in order to get rent allowance...isn't that kinda of the point?


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    #17
    Victor
    Registered Users Posts: 78,385 ✭✭✭✭Victor


    Potentially, the jobseekers benefit would be replaced by the back to education allowance and the rent allowance would be aon a needs basis, but check this with your community welfare officer and social welfare.


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    #18
    ricman
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1,559 ✭✭✭ricman


    I dont think any welfare officer would encourage anyone on the dole to rent an apartment ,cos in dublin apartments are 600 minimum ,ie they are all over the limit , so you are moving into a place thats ineligable for rent allowance and you have to pay at least 1200 deposit in advance,its kind of ridiculous.
    ITS like joe bloggs on the dole applying for a 400k mortgage,a waste of time.
    The rent allowance is supposed to be a safety net for basic accomodation, thats why theres strict limits on the amount of rent you can pay.
    it might be different if he was living in an apartment and lost his job.


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    #19
    eth0_
    Registered Users Posts: 10,846 ✭✭✭✭eth0_


    ztoical wrote: »
    If they are going back on a back to education scheme like Vetos they can keep some benefits like rent allowance.

    He couldn't possibly be going onto BTEA, though - the only post-grad courses they cover are HDip's and the Diploma in Education (source: http://www.welfare.ie/EN/Publications/SW70/Pages/ABacktoEducationAllowanceBTEA.aspx)


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    #20
    anaracdigiteach
    Registered Users Posts: 21 ✭anaracdigiteach


    hi
    was just wondering if anyone knows or has experience of moving from local autourity housing to private and getting rent allowance.I live with my parents in a council house but really want to move out.Been living here for years so would I be right in thinking that will satisfy the 6 month rule?
    cheers!


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    #21
    kerash
    Registered Users Posts: 6,688 ✭✭✭kerash


    anaracdigiteach wrote: »
    hi
    was just wondering if anyone knows or has experience of moving from local autourity housing to private and getting rent allowance.I live with my parents in a council house but really want to move out.Been living here for years so would I be right in thinking that will satisfy the 6 month rule?
    cheers!

    Afaik you must apply for housing assessment to the local CC and be assessed as needing to be housed. It's very difficult if you have been living at home to get through this - they'll try to say you have a place to live so you don't need to be housed.


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