Thousands of Brits could benefit from cash of around £7,320 or more to help with housing costs as part of a Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) scheme. Certain households could qualify for what is known as Support for Mortgage Interest (SMI).
The DWP can provide loans to help with mortgage interest payments (Image: Getty)
This scheme is there to help people pay the interest on up to £200,000 of their mortgage, or loans they’ve taken out to pay for work to the house.
Under current interest rates this could equal around £7,320 a year, or £610 a month.
However, you need to meet specific criteria to be eligible for the money, which is a loan and will need to be paid back eventually.
The Government website explains: “If you’re a homeowner or have bought a shared ownership property, you might be able to get help towards interest payments on: your mortgage, or loans you’ve taken out for certain repairs and improvements to your home. This help is called Support for Mortgage Interest (SMI).
This cash support is a loan and will need to be paid back (Image: Getty)
“It’s paid as a loan, which you’ll need to repay with interest when you sell or transfer ownership of your home (unless you’re moving the loan to another property). You need to be getting a qualifying benefit to get SMI.”
The interest rate used to calculate the amount of SMI you’ll get is currently 3.66 percent.
At the current SMI interest rate, you could get a loan of 3.66 percent of £200,000 across a year. This is £7,320 a year or £610 a month.
Who is eligible?
To be eligible for an SMI loan, you need to be getting one of the following qualifying benefits:
- Income Support
- income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
- income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
- Universal Credit
- Pension Credit.
“Contact the relevant office to check if you’re eligible for SMI,” the Government website adds. “There’s no credit check.”
You can start getting the loan:
- From the date you start getting Pension Credit
- After you’ve claimed Income Support, income-based JSA or income-based ESA for 39 weeks in a row
- After you’ve got Universal Credit for three months in a row or you moved to Universal Credit within a month of another benefit ending and you’ve spent three months in total getting these benefits.
How to apply
When you apply for a qualifying benefit, you’ll be asked extra questions about your hous ing costs to find out if you’re eligible for SMI.
If you then want to apply for SMI, you’ll need to fill in and sign in a form. You do not need to pay a fee to apply. To find out more, visit gov.uk/support-for-mortgage-interest/how-to-apply.
It is important to remember that SMI is a loan and will need to be paid back. “You’ll need to repay your SMI loan with interest if you sell or transfer ownership of your home,” the Government says.
“The interest you pay can go up or down, but the rate will not change more than twice a year. The current rate is 3.9 percent. You’ll be told if this is going to change.
“Interest will be added every year until the loan is completely repaid or written off.”
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DWP ‘act now’ warning as millions missing out on State Pension boost before deadline
Make sure you micimise your retierment income (Image: Getty)
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has warned millions of people that they should act now – or risk losing the opportunity to boost their State Pension.
In new advice published today, the DWP said people have less than six months to fill any gaps in their National Insurance records from 2006 onwards to maximise their State Pension. The Government is encouraging people to act now – and check their National Insurance record.
A DWP spokesperson said: “More than 10,000 payments worth £12.5 million have been made through the new digital service to boost people’s State Pension since it launched in April 2024, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has revealed. People have until 5 April 2025 to maximise their State Pension by making voluntary National Insurance contributions to fill any gaps in their NI record between 6 April 2006 and 5 April 2018.
A higger income will help you to enjoy your retirement more (Image: Getty)
“HMRC and Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) are encouraging people to act now and use the Check your State Pension forecast tool on GOV.UK to see if they can increase their retirement income. The service enables people to check if they have gaps in their National Insurance (NI) record, calculate if making a payment would increase their State Pension, and then make a payment if they wish to do so.”
Since its launch in April, more 3.7 million people have used the online checking tool on GOV.UK to view their State Pension forecast. The DWP says that once the April 5 2025 deadline has passed, people will only be able to make voluntary contributions for the previous six tax years, in line with normal time limits.
Emma Reynolds, Minister for Pensions, said: “We want pensioners of today and tomorrow to enjoy the dignity and support they deserve in retirement. That’s why I urge everyone to check if they could benefit by filling gaps before the deadline passes. Using our online tool means only a few clicks could make a huge difference to your future.”
Emma Reynolds said she wants want pensioners to ‘enjoy the dignity and support they deserve’ (Image: Getty)
To Check your State Pension forecast, log on using your HMRC account or via the free and secure HMRC app. Those without an online HMRC account can register on GOV.UK.
A spokesperson said: “HMRC app users can see their pension details at their fingertips including their current potential retirement date as well as annual, monthly and weekly forecasts as well as checking their NI record. Everyone should be aware of the risk of falling victim to scams and should never share their HMRC login details with anyone. HMRC scams advice is available on GOV.UK.”
People are advised to check if they can get National Insurance credits before they look into paying voluntary contributions. Men born after 6 April 1951 or women born after 6 April 1953 are eligible to make voluntary National Insurance contributions to boost their State Pensions.
Most people of working age will be able to use the online service, without needing to phone HMRC or DWP. This includes UK taxpayers living abroad who want to pay voluntary contributions for years they were resident in the UK.
However, additional payments cannot be made by those who are already receiving their State Pension, self-employed customers or customers currently living outside the UK with gaps incurred while working abroad.
