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An adviser can give you legal advice about your housing rights. You can get advice on housing by contacting Housing Rights Service or using our telephone helpline. Our advisers may be able to help you keep your home or, if you are homeless, we can explain your options and ensure you get the help you are entitled to.
What services does Housing Rights Service provide?
Housing Rights Service does not provide housing for homeless people. However, we may be able to help you find emergency housing.
Our advisers can also help if you have a legal problem. We may be able to stop an eviction or represent you in court. You don't have to be sleeping on the streets to use our services, which are free and confidential.
Other agencies in your area may also provide advice and help with about housing problems and related issues.
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Can an adviser help me keep my home?
You should always get advice if you have been asked to leave your home. An adviser can check whether you have a legal right to stay. You don't always have to leave just because you've been told to.
Landlords and mortgage lenders have to follow the correct procedure if they want to evict you. In most cases you are entitled to written notice and a court order. Even if you have already left, you may be able to move back in. You have fewer rights if you share with your landlord. S/he should still give you some notice but there is no legal definition of what is reasonable, so it could be a very short time.
If you had to leave home because of family problems, you should get advice immediately. You may be able to get counselling or mediation services to help you sort things out. If you have been asked to leave by your wife, husband or partner you may have the right to stay. The law in this area is very complicated and you will need help from an adviser.
Can I get help from the Housing Executive?
The Housing Executive has a legal duty to give housing advice and information on preventing homelessness to anyone who asks in Northern Ireland. The Housing Executive has to help you if you are homeless or likely to become homeless within 28 days.
If the Housing Executive won't house you, you may be able to get help from social services. There are special rules about who is entitled to housing. In most areas, there isn't much housing available.
If the Housing Executive offers you emergency accommodation it is likely to be a place in a hostel or a bed and breakfast. Contact an advice agency if you are unhappy with the emergency accommodation the Housing Executive has offered you.
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People from abroad
Most asylum seekers and some other people from abroad can't get housing from the Housing Executive but may be able to get help from the UK Border Agency instead. Contact the Northern Ireland Council for Ethnic Minorities before you ask for help.
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What other emergency options are there?
If the Housing Executive won't help you, there are various types of accommodation you might be able to use in an emergency. Staying with friends or family is probably the easiest and least stressful option but it may only be possible to stay for a couple of nights. Look into your other options, including:
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Am I entitled to any financial help?
You have to pay rent for most types of emergency housing. You may be able to claim housing benefit to help pay for this if you are on benefits or have a low income. You may also be able to get help with a deposit or rent in advance.
It is worth checking out the Social Security Agency website to find out what else you might be eligible for. If you don't have any money to pay for accommodation, get advice immediately.
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