Staying in or leaving the family home

Keeping up rent or mortgage payments

If you have separated from the other parent and your expenses are likely to increase, ask yourself if you can continue paying the rent or mortgage. Work out a quick budget if you are not sure.

Things to bear in mind when making a budget if you decide to keep the family home:

• You may qualify for extra benefits and tax credits for your child’s living expenses. See the information on different types of financial support you may be entitled to.
• You may qualify for maintenance for yourself if you are married to the other parent and they can afford to pay it. Get legal advice before making any formal agreement with the other parent.

Sharing a house is not a long-term solution and sooner or later you and the other parent will have to decide what should happen to the house. If you can't agree between you, then a court can do it for you.

Will living apart affect my benefits and tax credits?

Yes, it will.

If you and the other parent don’t live together or have 'separate households', you must both make your own, separate claims for benefits or tax credits (or both). Having separate households means you can still live together, but you do everyday things like preparing or eating meals separately.

Usually, if you are the parent with the main day-to-day care, you will claim your benefits or tax credits (or both) as a lone parent, and the other parent will make their own claim as a single adult.

If you sell your home and are left with more than £16,000, this may affect your entitlement to some benefits. But if you are using the money to buy another home, the money can be ignored for benefit entitlement purposes for six months. See our money and finance section for more information.