# One Parent Family, Community Emp Scheme & Rent Allce Help



## Moi84 (18 May 2010)

Can anybody help me calculate what Rent Allowance (RA) I would be paying?

I currently recieve €240 from Community Employment (CE) Scheme €180 One Parent Family (OPF) Payment & €30 maintenance.

Childcare costs €105 per week and travel expenses to work cost €50 per week.

Do they take into account loans I pay per week? €120 per week?

I am currently living with my parent and need to get a place of my own now that I have an income to pay bills.

I know from welfare.ie that max rent in my area is €163 per week and I am looking at places of €600-€700 per month. I know that without income I would be paying €24 per week but obviously I would be paying more as I have income from CE Scheme?


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## ajapale (18 May 2010)

Hi Moi,

Please expand your abbreviations. Thanks
aj (mod)


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## gipimann (18 May 2010)

Note to aj - One Parent Family Payment, Community Employment Scheme and Rent Supplement!

Moi,
If you're living at home, and haven't been in private rented accommodation for 6 of the past 12 months, you won't qualify for Rent Supplement unless you've been assessed by your local authority as having a housing need (i.e. be on their housing list).

As you have several sources of income, it's not possible to give you an exact figure.   Not all of your CE income is assessed, all of your maintenance is assessed.  There is no allowance for travel, childcare or other loans.

You'll find more information in this booklet

[broken link removed]


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## Moi84 (21 Jun 2010)

Does anyone know exactly how much rent allowance I would get?

I cannot get through to the Community Welfare Officer (CWO) and I need to act fast on a reasonable place Im after seeing on daft.


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## solstice (21 Jun 2010)

You have to be already living in the place for a certain amount of time   (ie paying rent out of own income) before you can be approved for rent   allowance. But I'm not sure about single parents.

Citizens Information would know: 1890 777 121 

Also they have a webpage outlining rules, rates etc, but I can't post the link. 

Do a search in google for: citizens information rent supplement.


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## fababby (21 Jun 2010)

Hi Moi84

Generally the 6 months rule does apply to rent supplement but there are exceptions and one exception is Lone Parents.  So you are entitled to apply.  CE scheme income is taken into account and maintenance upto €95.23 is assessed in full so your maintenance will be assessed.

The means test is as follows:- 

€30 plus €180 plus €240 = €450 minus SWA for your family which is €225.80 (am assuming one child) gives a balance of €224.20.  From this additional income there is a disregard of €75.  So, €224.20 minus €75 = €149.20 and 25% of this balance is assessed as means which is €37.30.

This gives means of €37.30 plus the minimum contribution of €24 that you will have to pay (€61.30) and the balance is paid by your community welfare officer. 

€163 - €61.30 = €101.70 is the amount your CWO will pay weekly if your application is successful which equates to €440.70 per month.  Those calculations are dependent on the accuracy of the figures you have supplied so it could be give or take a few euro but should give you an idea.  

€440.70 is less than the €600 - 700 you are proposing paying.  CWO's don't generally tolerate paying rent supplement for a house in excess of the maximum allowed.  The maximum rent you should be looking at is €544.70 (includes the minimum contribution) to have better chance at successful application.

Hope it not too confusing - good luck!  A


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## Moi84 (21 Jun 2010)

Thanksso much fababbey thats exactly what I was looking for. Need to stay in rural area near my mums creche & sons dad and 160 aweek is cheapest rent I can find


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## solstice (21 Jun 2010)

That figure of €163 would vary depending on what part of the country you are living in...

From citizensinformation.ie:
_Couple with 1 child or one-parent  family with 1 child:
Maximum rent_ 
Dublin, Kildare and Wicklow              €930 per month (Dublin) €880 per month (Kildare and  Wicklow)                                Longford, Westmeath, Laois and Offaly              €131 per week                                Clare, Limerick and Tipperary North              €140 per week                                Cavan, Monaghan, Louth and Meath              €131 per week (Monaghan and Cavan) €163 per week  (Meath) €149 per week (Louth)                               Donegal, Leitrim and Sligo              €131 per week (Donegal and Leitrim) €140 per week  (Sligo)                               Carlow, Kilkenny, Waterford, Wexford and Tipperary South               €140 per week                               Galway, Mayo and Roscommon             €163 per week                                Cork and Kerry              €143 per week (Kerry) €163 per week (Cork)


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## gipimann (22 Jun 2010)

fababby said:


> Hi Moi84
> 
> Generally the 6 months rule does apply to rent supplement but there are exceptions and one exception is Lone Parents. So you are entitled to apply. CE scheme income is taken into account and maintenance upto €95.23 is assessed in full so your maintenance will be assessed.


 
This is not correct.

The regulations state that a person can only be considered for Rent Supplement if they have been 
- living in rented accommodation for 6 of the previous 12 months and been in a position to afford the rent at that time
or
- have been assessed as having a housing need by the local authority and have been placed on their housing list.

This applies to all applicants regardless of family size - there is no exception for Lone Parents.



> The means test is as follows:-
> 
> €30 plus €180 plus €240 = €450 minus SWA for your family which is €225.80 (am assuming one child) gives a balance of €224.20. From this additional income there is a disregard of €75. So, €224.20 minus €75 = €149.20 and *25% of this balance is assessed as means* which is €37.30.


 
The part bolded is incorrect - 25% of the balance is *disregarded*, 75% of the balance is assessed as means. 

The maximum rent limits quoted by Solstice are about to be changed, most likely from 1st July or thereabouts.


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## fababby (22 Jun 2010)

Apologies for my error and thank you for picking up on it Gipimann - getting disregard and means inverted - makes a difference to the calculation - Total payable towards rent is €111.90 plus the minimum contribution of €24 = €135.90 so the CWO will pay only €27.10 per week towards a maximum rent of €163 in your locale (currently).  Apologies again Moi84, I confused myself in over simplifying a confusing calculation.

The lone parent exception information to the six month rule was given to me by a Community Welfare Officer in my locale who said there were a number of exceptions to this rule including people released from prision.  Maybe they apply the guidelines diffently in differing areas or she was speaking out of turn but that is the information I have.

A


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## gipimann (22 Jun 2010)

Fababby, I did say the calculations were complicated in an earlier post!

Here are the qualifying criteria for Rent Supplement, directly from SW website:

_Rent Supplement will only be provided if the accommodation is suitable for your needs and the rent is below the maximum rent level set for your county. _
_You may get Rent Supplement if you have been living for 6 months (183 days) out of the last 12 months in one, or a combination, of the following: _

_Accommodation for homeless people_
_Private rented accommodation. You must be able to show that you could afford the rent at the beginning of your tenancy and that you could have continued to pay rent but are unable to do so because of a change in your circumstances which occurred after you started renting. _
_An institution, for example, a hospital, care home or place of detention   _
*Or*

_Be assessed in the last 12 months by a local authority as being eligible for and in need of social housing. If you don't have a housing need assessment, you must go to the local authority to have your housing need assessed. The local authority must be in the same area that you intend to live and claim Rent Supplement. Only when you are assessed as eligible for and in need of housing can you apply for Rent Supplement. Rent Supplement is not payable while the local authority is carrying out a housing needs assessment.  _
There is no specific exemption for Lone Parents,although many lone parents may be on the housing list which would entitle them to apply - perhaps this is what the CWO meant.   The guidelines should be applied equally nationally.


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## fababby (22 Jun 2010)

Yes, you did.  Thank you.  

I don't what to say to your last comment.  The CWO was perfectly clear.  She and her colleagues accept applications for rent supplement from lone parents who do not have 6 months in private rented accommodation.  But presumably it is because the lone parent would be high up on the priority list for access to the schedule of letting priorities.


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