Renting my property questions

mtmcgill

Hi, I am about to rent my property out and rent out an apartment myself. My mortgage is currently an interest only, do i have to declare my rental fee?
Thnaks

Yorkie1

You will need to seek consent to let from your mortgage lender as you will currently have a residential mortgage.

If your property is a flat (and thus leasehold), you will need to check whether your lease forbids sub-letting.

You will need to declare the income on a tax self-assessment form to the revenue.

G_M has a post which sets out a whole load of other things you need to be aware of before getting into the business of renting out your property. Hopefully he or someone else will link to it for you (I haven't got it saved).

And consider joining a LL's association.

G_M

Before renting your property out, read this post and check out ALL the links too.

Werdnal

I'd 2nd above advice. Consent to let is your first issue, both from lender and freeholder (if applicable)

You then need to change your insurance (buildings cover at an absolute minimum) to landlord terms, as your current residential policy will not apply.

Do you know anything at all about the legal requirements of becoming a LL? Your repair and maintenance obligations? Declaring rental income for tax? How to draw up a legally binding tenancy agreement? Vetting and credit checking tenants? Deposit protection? Laws surrounding issuing notice, evictions etc? Have you a substantial contingency of cash to cover repairs, voids in letting, loss of rent through defaulting tenants - if you are relying on rent to pay the mortgage, this could be a major issue.

Do your homework and it is relatively easy. Don't and you land yourself in a financial mess.

Maybe get advice and support of a good letting agent for your first let until you learn the ropes!