Mortgage Advisor, Stephen Kerrigan of Mortgages Remortgages in Doncaster will help give information to you on the many different housing options available to people living with a Mental illness.
As someone who knows Mental Health well from my own experiences, there are different types of housing available such as, living with family, independent living and supported accommodation. Where you can live will depend on your support needs and the availability in the Doncaster and Yorkshire region.
The different types of supported housing will give various levels of support, and of course you will need to think about how you will pay for your housing too. Don’t worry though, as a Mortgage Advisor I know it can be difficult to know where to start when choosing your housing. Why not start with these following questions:
“What support do I need to live?”
“What are the different types of housing in Doncaster and surrounding area?”
“How will I pay for the Housing?”
“It gives eligible people who live in council properties in Doncaster, South Yorkshire the right to buy their home at a discount.”
At Mortgages Remortgages Doncaster Fee Free Mortgage Advisor, we like to think that we can take the extra mile and help anyone with their housing needs – even if you’re not looking into a Mortgage at the moment, Stephen Kerrigan has the experience and knowledge of this industry and he has some advice that he would like to share. The main housing options are, Independent Living with supported accommodation and living with family members such as Mum, Dad, Grandparents, Uncles, and Aunties, etc. But what is Independent living exactly? You can live independently with or without support.
If you live without the support you will have to manage your own time and run the house yourself. This will include making sure that rent, utility bills, and council tax are paid on time. You may also be eligible for Housing Related Support if you need support to live independently. HRS is not available in all areas of the country and support will be different in different areas.
HRS is funded by the local authority but is often provided by charities. This means that it is separate from support provided by the mental health team or social services.
Living independently can be expensive. You should think about how you will pay for the cost of housing and your living costs. Think about the cost of the following things such as, rent or mortgage, electricity and gas, water rates, council tax, food and drink, cleaning products and equipment, such as a vacuum cleaner, and social costs, such as going out with friends.
Mortgages Remortgages Doncaster Fee Free Mortgage Advisor may be able to offer Advice and to help you to work out your income and living costs. Stephen Kerrigan, our Advisor can also check that you are claiming all of the benefits that you may be entitled to. Mortgages Remortgages have an online calculator which you can use to work out if you are claiming all of the benefits that you are entitled to. But the calculator is a guide only.
You can apply for social housing if you have a low income. Council and housing association housing tends to be cheaper than renting privately.
You can apply for council housing and housing association housing through your local council. There is usually a waiting list. You are not guaranteed to get housing.
Housing associations sometimes keep their own waiting lists. You can contact them directly to ask. You can search for housing associations through the internet. Or you can ask for details from your local council. The wait will be different in different areas, but you will often have to wait a long time. Ask your council how long the wait is in your area. Councils will decide who should get housing based on a points or banding system. The points or bands are based on your housing need.
for example, you are likely to be offered housing more quickly if you have a medical condition that is made worse by where you live at the moment, are homeless, or live in cramped conditions.
Your council will contact you when a suitable property becomes available or tell you about how to bid for a property. You will have a short period of time to accept a property that is offered to you. If you don’t accept a suitable property you may be put further down the waiting list. If you turn down a lot of properties you may be removed from the waiting list.
If you already live in a rental property than you could be able to buy your home. This is called Right to Buy, but what is ‘Right to Buy’?
The scheme is open to people who are secure tenants of a local council and who have spent at least 3 years as a public sector tenant. Tenants of housing associations who had secured tenancies when their homes were transferred from the local council to the housing association also have a preserved Right to Buy.
As there is a lot of equity already in the house no deposit is required for the purchase. There are also options with several mortgage companies to borrow additional funds to fund home improvements such as new windows/doors, conservatory etc.
Supported accommodation in Doncaster or any Yorkshire region may be an option if you need some support but also want some independence. You may need short term supported accommodation to help you to live independently. For example, if you have just come out of hospital. Or you may need long term supported accommodation. Supported accommodation covers a wide range of different types of housing. It generally means a housing scheme or service where housing support, and care services are provided altogether. It can mean that you get support in your home. This is called ‘floating support.’ Or that you live in a certain place to get the level of support that you need.
Supported housing services offer low, medium and high levels of support. There is no official definition about what each of these levels mean. But generally low-level support means that you have a few hours per week of support. Floating support would be an example of low-level care. High level will mean that you need up to 24 hours support each day. Some supported housing services will be long term. Others will have a time limit on how long you can stay there.
As your Mortgage Advisor in Doncaster, I recommend that support for Mortgage Interest is ideal to help you pay the interest on your Mortgage. You may be able to claim SMI is if you live in a mortgaged property. Your Mortgage is a type of loan. As with any loan, your bank will charge you interest on the money that they lend to you. SMI will help you to pay of the interest of your Mortgage. It will not help you pay back the actual amount you borrowed.
SMI can help with interest payments on a loan up to value of £200,000. But if you claim pension credits it only helps with loans up to £100,000.
You will have to wait 39 weeks after you apply to get your first payment. The DWP will pay your mortgage lender. There is no waiting time if you are claiming pension credit.
Universal Credit (UC) will include extra payments to meet mortgage interest costs if you are not working and you live in a UC area. You need to have claimed UC and paid your mortgage for 9 months before you can get SMI.
You can contact Jobcentre Plus or pop in to the Doncaster Branch on how to apply for a SMI.
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