Housing benefits
You might be able to get Housing Benefit to help pay your rent if you are on a low income. Housing benefit is paid by the council.
Take me to Who can claim? ↘ Benefit calculator ↘ Apply for Housing Benefit ↘ Universal Credit ↘ Council Tax Reduction ↘ Discounts for disabled people ↘
Who can claim?
You can claim Housing Benefit if you are working age, on a low income and have a responsibility to pay rent and living in either:
- temporary accommodation
- supported accommodation
- some sheltered accommodation provided by a Housing Association
- You and your partner are of pension age
If you do not meet the criteria above, you will need to claim Universal Credit. Universal Credit is a benefit for working age people and has replaced Housing Benefit since 2018.
Housing Benefit does not help with mortgages, the Support for Mortgage Interest Scheme (SMI) administered by the Department for Works and Pensions, helps those on low income pay interest on their mortgage.
Benefit calculator
If you meet the criteria and would like to see if you would qualify for Housing Benefit, you can use an independent benefits calculator.
The amount you get depends on:
- money that you and your partner have coming in
- your savings and your partner's savings
- any other people you live with
- other circumstances such as your age, ages and size of your family, if anyone in your family is disabled
Apply for Housing Benefit
To apply for Housing Benefit, you will need to submit an application using our online application form.
When you get to the end of the form you will see a list of documents needed to support your claim. Please upload the documents or if you do not have them to hand please send them as soon as possible to housing.benefits@redbridge.gov.uk.
Universal Credit
If you are not eligible to claim housing benefit you will need to claim the housing costs element within Universal Credit with the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).
Council Tax Reduction
If you are on a low income and are the person responsible for paying council tax, you may be able to claim Council Tax Reduction.
If you are a pensioner who shares your home with another adult who is not your partner, and they are unable to pay towards the council tax, you can apply for Second Adult Rebate.
Council Tax Reduction is based on you household and income. We will pay some or all of your council tax for you if you qualify. You will not be entitled to a discount if you have over £16,000 in capital.
Apply for Council Tax Reduction
Discounts for disabled people
If you or another adult living in the property have a disability, you may be eligible for a reduction to your council tax.
You will have to show that you have either:
- an extra bathroom, kitchen or other room that you need for the disabled person
- extra space inside the property for using a wheelchair
The property must be the main home of at least one disabled person. This can be an adult or a child, it doesn’t have to be the person responsible for paying the council tax.
