# Jobseekers allowance and means testing



## have no clue (26 Oct 2008)

Hi

Husbands limited company just gone into voluntary liquidation. He was joint director on PRSI SI and I was an employee so both now unemployed. We have no other income, no savings (everything went into business) and three children. We have mortgage on our own house and a second house rented out. Not actually rented at the moment, but should be within a month or two. How does the second house affect us for means testing. It's worth 320k, mortgage left is 140k, so after tax worth €144k. Probably not relevant but monthly repayments are 1k and renatal income is 1.2k pm. Also is this relevant for all welfare payments?


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## gipimann (27 Oct 2008)

From the DSFA document on Means Assessment

*Assessment of house property*

Property covered by this rule includes houses (other than a person's own home), buildings or land owned but not personally used or enjoyed.

The house in which a person resides, together with furniture and personal effects is not assessed.

Property must be capable of being sold, let or put to profitable use before a capital value assessment is applied.

The most common example is where a person owns a second house. If the house is let, the owner is assessed with the capital value of the property, not with the income from the letting. Similarly, the market value of leases and ground rents is assessed as capital; the income is not assessed.

Any outstanding mortgage registered against the property is deducted from the market value.

Weekly means are assessed as follows:

Capital .........................Weekly Means Assessed

First €20,000 ...........................Nil
Next €10,000 ....................€1 per €1,000
Next €10,000 ....................€2 per €1,000
Excess of €40,000 .............€4 per €1,000

If both parties are in receipt of, or claiming, means tested payments, the asset should not be assessed in full against both. Depending on any other relevant factors, it should be assessed against both on a shared basis or against one only.



Link to the SW document


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