Page 275

SNAP CERTIFICATION MANUAL – SECTION 5000 5700 Unearned Income 5714 Reimbursement for Normal Living Expenses

5714 Reimbursement for Normal Living Expenses SNAP Manual 01/01/00 If a household is reimbursed for normal household expenses such as rent, mortgage, personal items or food that is eaten at home, the reimbursement is considered to be a gain or benefit and is counted as unearned income. (For situations which reimbursements are excluded, see SNAP 5411.) If the reimbursement is provided by an employer and considered compensation for actual work performance, the income will be counted as earned income.

5715 Rental Income SNAP Manual 01/01/00  NOTE: This section does not deal with income from boarders. See SNAP 5620 for instructions on handling income from boarders. Rental income is money received as the result of the rent or lease of property owned by a household member or members. The amount of the rental income to be shown in the SNAP budget will be the gross amount of rental income received less the “costs of doing business”. Costs of doing business include real estate taxes on the property, insurance premiums paid for insurance to cover the property, and interest paid on a loan on the rental property. If the costs of doing business cannot be distinguished from a household’s shelter costs, then these costs will not be allowed. For example, a household owns a house with a garage apartment. The garage apartment is rented for $200 per month. The household makes one payment on the property. The taxes and insurance are included in the payment. The household states there is no way to identify the portion of taxes, insurance or interest paid on the garage apartment; therefore, the county office worker allows the entire property payment as a shelter cost. The entire $200 payment received for rent on the garage apartment is shown as income. If a household member is engaged in the management of the property at least 20 hours per week, rental income is considered earned income. Otherwise, the rental income is considered unearned income. If rental income is considered earned income, the earned income deduction explained in SNAP 6200 will be applied to the net rental income. Land rent is income received on an annual basis for the rental of property used in an agricultural endeavor. Since an agreement must be reached regarding the amount of land rent to be