Hello I am wondering what will happen to me given my current situation. I have a studio flat which I got 2-3 years ago after many years' effort, and it is rented out to someone else as until very recently I was living with my partner in her place and contributing to the rent there. I have now sadly split up with my partner and having separated, I have been staying with a friend on the couch but now have to move on. My income is low, having reduced as a result of my work position getting weaker over the last couple of years, more or less since I got the studio flat; my income from work alone (if I did not own the studio flat...) would normally mean I was now entitled to get a high proportion of housing benefit at a new place (while I try to improve my work situation). I am not sure what the position is now, re: claiming housing benefit: can I leave the rental situation on my studio flat as is (with the person paying the rent) and move in to a new place and claim housing benefit on the new place (thus enabling me to live at a new place)? Ideally, it would be simpler to leave the arrangement with the studio flat as it is, since the costs (ie, mortgage) are being covered (just) by the person living there paying rent. If I move to a new place then (I have got my eye on a small flat), a) is that allowed for purposes of claiming housing benefit (given the existence of my studio flat that someone else is living in); and b) how do they calculate my entitlement for housing benefit at the new place. About point b), does the council see the rent being paid at the studio flat just as income (despite the fact that it has to be paid to meet the mortgage costs), if it does then that would mean they would see my income for calculating my entitlement at the new place as consisting of both the rental income at the studio flat (with no costs deducted, ie the mortgage costs) and my low level of present income from work; and if they do it like that then I would not be entitled to much housing benefit in the new place and it would be very hard to live there (since my actual free amount of income is lower than their calculation would allow for...given the income from the studio flat is covering the mortgage cost). If you see what I mean? a lot depends I guess on how they look at the income side of the studio flat (among other things). Incidentally, the rent paid by the occupant of the studio flat is paying off both capital and interest on the mortgage; it's still going to take 22 more years for it to be paid off so doesn't feel like a great scenario to be honest (particularly given my current circumstances...). Please could any experts on here advise on this scenario - points a/b above? i would be really gratefull. Regards William