Setting House Rules when renting a room out

neverdespairgirl

christineperseus wrote: »

Would they be allowed to receive post at YOUR address?
This could affect your credit rating if they have a poor one.

That's out of date - it doesn't go by address any more.

PasturesNew

sitesafe wrote: »

if you don't have a partner and they do you do tend to feel outnumbered in your home when their partner is around!

When I was looking for a lodger I specifically said to people I didn't want a couple for this reason.

rumbaba

My young niece and her husband are having a terrible time trying to find lodgings. Most live-in landlords/landladys stipulate singles only according to my niece.

mlz1413

rumbaba wrote: »

My young niece and her husband are having a terrible time trying to find lodgings. Most live-in landlords/landladys stipulate singles only according to my niece.

They would probably be better looking for a HMO which would allow them dedicated use of a room (normally bedroom) then the rest of the house is shared - no live in LL, but this can be open to many problems like noise.

Has your niece thought about placing an advert saying 'WANTED double room for couple to rent'? I'd be prepared to pay a premium as not people do want to share their house with 2 strangers (as she has already found out).

Sweetpea I think in your Auntie's situation of having 2 lodgers and I guess these regularly change then a list of rules and not being friends with them is probably a must. Re making a good living out of it I hope she doesn't charge over £75pw per room.

But as a general when people only rent to 1 person then they want a certain amount of amicable friendship to feel comfortable. This is I agree open to abuse, but I think before renting a room people should try and spend a weekend with friends and via-verus as many of us don't realise what winds us up until it happens. As in personally I have no problem with food being taken upstairs, I do have a problem with the plate/cutlery not being brought down again and the room not being aired. I don't have a problem with someones bedroom being a pigsty but I do have a problem if the bathroom / kitchen / living rooms are left messy or worse dirty. But we are all different (luckily).

bubblesmoney

why invite problems by sharing ur internet and phone connection with strangers. after all mobile phones are prett cheap and i guess almost everyone has one these days. also mobile internet dongles are prety cheap now a days as well and added benefit is that u wont be held responsible for what the lodger surfs incaseit is of the dodgy variety and the cops decide to pay a visit. why let urself open to problems for no fault of yours. if they want a landline and landline broadband then they should be willing to get one on their own in their room. i took permission of the LL when i was living in a shared flat andgot my own phone and net connection in my room. it was expensive but worth the effort as avoided hassles of sharing phone lines and internet connection. now a days it should be even more easier with mobile internet dongles doing away with the need for physical phone lines.

if sharing flat with younger immature girls then make sure to specify how u will share storage space in bathroom etc because if they are the kind to have a marks and spencer outlet for cosmetics in the bathroo then u will never find ur showergel or shaving gel in the mess and not to forget mentioning no prolonged baths (perfumed candle lit and what not or u will never get o work on time if someone else is busy with spa treatments in the shared bathroom. my cousin had to put up with one who would spend hours on the loo reading magazines and even eating crisps, chocolates and what not etc in the loo while my cousin was dying outside to take a leak. sharing a house can be a joy or a big pain so interview ur prospective tenants properly.

with males make sure they are the kind that dont p1ss all over the bog and expect someone else to clean up after them, same goes for the kitchen as well. oh dont forget to avoid the ones who prefer to run around naked on their way back from the bathroom.

life can become miserable pretty quickly for u if u flatshare with more people and two of the others take a fancy to each other then one of them doesnt feel the same anymore or doesnt reciprocate and then you get stuck in the middle of tose two and have to alternatively listen to their sob stories everyday or try to avoid being the middleman trying to avoid WW2 in the flat.

if there is any trouble dont hesitate to boot them out, messy people and people who trouble others dont usually learn easily by someone else trying to talk sense with them, they only grow up when booted out and hopefully wont hassle people at the next place they land up in. when things do go right while sharing a flat then life can be good indeed for both the lodger and LL

neverdespairgirl

We shared for years with another person, so there were 3 of us (me and OH, and the third person). For 5 years with another student from the same university, and when she left, an old school mate of OH's for 2 years.

It always worked fine, but they did know before they moved in that we were a couple.

pickledpink

neverdespairgirl wrote: »

We shared for years with another person, so there were 3 of us (me and OH, and the third person). For 5 years with another student from the same university, and when she left, an old school mate of OH's for 2 years.

It always worked fine, but they did know before they moved in that we were a couple.

A couple of what??????:D

sitesafe

PasturesNew wrote: »

When I was looking for a lodger I specifically said to people I didn't want a couple for this reason.

Hi PN

When I advertised the room I put double room for single occupancy in the ad and granted the b/f doesn't live here but do you think I'm being unreasonable if i was to say I only want him there a maximum of 3 nights a week (even if I might not be there on the other nights as i work nights) - it's just that if I worked 7 nights a week I think he'd be there 7 nights a week - and i didn't do this to be a charity i did it becaused i needed some extra income!

I know folk mights say it shouldn't make any difference if i'm not there, but i think it will, especially with an extra person showering, bathing using the loo (i'm on a meter) each night i'm not there.

If I wanted to let it to a couple then i would have done and charged accordingly!

any opinion?

ss

sitesafe

~Beanie~ wrote: »

I can relate to this one!

I've recently got a lodger although she was a friend before she moved in, she split with her husband and I took pity on her. She left her husband for another person and when she first moved in, I did state that I didn't want 'John' staying overnight. The reasons are as you say, I can hear everything (small open-plan terraced house) and would like to wander around in my pyjamas without bumping into strange men! I also felt uncomfortable when I came home from work and they were snuggled up on the sofa together.

Anyway, she split with him and is now single. She bought a bloke back last week and although I was upstairs in bed reading, I could hear everything they were saying in the living room. She came up and asked if he could stay the night and I said no - I didn't know him and wouldn't feel comfortable leaving him in my house when I went to work, apart from hearing kissing etc. Also my bathroom is downstairs and I didn't even dare come down for a wee in case I caught them in a compromising position!

I am slightly worried now that originally I only said that 'John' couldn't stay over (being the boyfriend at the time), I think I should have specified no men at all! Other than that, it works well, I don't mind her having visitors or inviting people for tea whilst I'm at work. We share the shopping / cooking and all is good on the whole.

It is just the guest thing that potentially the problem so you really need to make it clear at the outset what is acceptable. I have been in this situation before when I shared a house with someone and they bought people back, I couldn't do anything about it as it was shared. This is MY house and I can set what rukes I like!

hi beanie

i so know how you feel! i don't want to feel like a meanie but this is the second night this week where i have worked nights only to find the b/f has stayed the night before. granted i don't have to see them doing their couple stuff when i'm not there, but the thing is if i worked 7 nights a week then i'm pretty sure he would be stayin 7 nights a week - i just feel that i'm taken advantage of as the 'occasional' and 'letting me know in advance' bit seems so have slipped their memory.

i like to know if there is the possibility that someone is going to be in my home when i get home from work or being out. maybe i should stipulate there are certain days i don't want people around say sunday and monday nights, (i can plan my nice cozy night by the fire in dressing gown then) but they have a choice of the other days but please let me know. like you i also have a downstairs bathroom which can prove awkward.

what i won't do is leave them and go to my room if i start to feel a bit uncomfortable, instead i start chatting to them and making conversation lol! if they want to be like that they can go upstairs. if i do this again i definitely won't be allowing a partner to stay for more than one night - sorry if that offends people but i will do the same also....i advertised for one person, i'm paid for one person and if potential lodgers aren't happy then they can always get a flat together with this person they seem to want to spend so much time with!!

mlz1413

Sitesafe did you agree to b/f staying over at all in the first place?
If you did agree were amount of days discussed?

I would talk this through with the lodger and say that you are uncomfortable with the arrangement, say that you do not mind the b/f staying 1 or 2 times a week but want it to be agreed/ you informed beforehand. Say that if the b/f stays over once a week then you won't increase her rent but if it's going to be 2 nights a week you want a bit extra towards the bills - this could be a % of her rent or just a round sum like £10 a week.

Mainly don't feel embarrased about tackling this issue, you have allowed it out of kindness but it is an issue because it has become regular, so you need to discuss it now before it does become 7 days a week!