Lodger Advice please

loopyloulou_3

I have been "offered" a lodger from my neighbour - never met him.

My neighbours have a 3bed house same as mine and have managed to squeeze 3 lodgers in (dont ask me how!!) and have realised that they have too many. The one that would potentially stay with us would stay 4 nights a week and we would get £70 a week for this.

Im undecided as what i should do. I have only ever lived with my OH (for 7 years) and before that i lived at home with my parents.

Me and OH are out for long hours all day and I am a little concerned about having a stranger in my house all day.

I need to talk to my OH about this, but he seems up for it. Any tips and advice would be appreciated. On the plus side it would help me and OH pay off £140 a month each off our debts.

tallulah

Hi loopy, i have a lodger, but its someone who i shared a rented house with for 2 yrs.. so defo not a stranger. :cool:

first things first ask the person who has offered you this person - are they tidy, noisy, smelly (hehe), also you & your OH need to meet the person first to see how you get on!

If so i would suggest you pull together a contract(don't think it has to be offical) - e.g. must give 30 days notice, depoist to be paid (in case of any damamge etc:eek:) (I must admit i aint done this - my excuse is i know the person & my head with battered with mortgage stuff it was the last thing on my mind ) Also have you considered the extra cost in gas & electric for this extra person in the house.

Having a logder is great to help with the bills and get a bit of extra cash, however it can be a pain in the backside if they are messy or lazy when it comes to tidying up - my logder has heard me say on many occassions its my house and if you don't like it find somewhere else to live - all said in jest ofcourse!!! :rotfl:


I can understand about having a stranger in your house - but thats the thing its YOUR house so you can ask them to leave (as long as you write this in the contract thing) if it gets too much. an be honest with them explain that you have never had a lodger or lived with anyone other than OH so its going to be bit strange etc etc. And also 4 nights a week isn';t so bad, at least you and OH with have 3 nights on your own..... to clean up :eek: .. he he only kidding

Good luck and let us know you decision and how you get on...

Mike_St_Helens

We had a lodger a while back for about a month, It was awful... bacause they are not family or close to you every little thing will drive you MAD!

The money is nice, but is it worth having your privicy invaded upon ...

themaccas

Don't do it!!!!! As Mike has said it is not worth someone invading your life and privacy especially someone you don't know. We had my brother lodge with us for 6 months a few years ago and it was hell! He was a model lodger too, paid on time, did his own cooking, cleaning, tidied up after himself. But it nearly split us up too. We couldn't get past the thing of having someone else gatecrash our life.

Iriahm

i'm a great believer in gut reaction, but get references, meet with them on neutral territory (pub/coffee shop) and if you think it may be ok, do a 3 month contract so both parties can walk away if it doesn't work... I've got a tenancy agreement i could send you....may not be relevant if you are in England/Wales/Ireland as Scottish tenancy laws are different...there if you want it.

loopyloulou_3

i am a bit scared of having my space invaded - and my kitchen for that matter!
gonna have to have a serious talk with OH about it, cos although the money would be nice, im a bit scared of potentially having to tidy up after another bloke in the house!!

Floss

Do a trial for a couple of months to see how you all get on, give receipts for rent & have a rent book to record all payments! Then you and lodger have a record of what has been paid.

loopyloulou_3

what do tennants expect to be included in the rent?

food? washing?!

themaccas

No and No loopyloulou. If you are going to cook and clean for them then triple the amount! They are lodging with you if they expect food and washing they can go to a hotel and have room service!

overbudget

I've done this in the past both full time (which did get very annoying!) and for a few nights each week which actually worked out really well. I got extra money but still had privacy etc.. I think it is definitely worth meeting the guy and finding out a bit about him!

Also decide on the terms under which he can stay - he'll have his own room presumably and use of the bathroom - but if you want you can specify certain limits on the kitchen and other shared space - for instance you could say he can use the kitchen between certain hours etc. and if you want you can restrict access to the lounge altogether (have to say I never have and it would depend on the size of the room being let but I know people who have and it is fine as long as the terms are clear from the start).

I certainly wouldn't include washing or cooking - you're not a B&B. Would expect bills to be included unless otherwise agreed (except telephone).

Check out all the details before you turn it down. Having someone in your house 4 nights a week is not the same as a full time lodger and it sounds like the money would be handy.

linniestorm

Definitely meet up with him a couple of times first I think before you decide! It may not be a bad thing, after all he could be tidy and perfectly pleasant!

Food and washing shouldn't be included, but give a detailed breakdown of what is and isn't and then he knows. You might want to make the monthly charge include room and council tax and then you're not going after him seperately for room, council tax and bills. I wouldn't include a fixed rate for bills, just ask him to chip in a third, cause if its fixed, there's nothing to say he couldn't hammer the electric and leave you short! Might be an idea to set dates each month when he coughs up money for bills, then you don't feel like you have to chase and he doesn't think you're just going to come after him for them as they come in!