Letting House Out Whilst Abroad?

sharloid

The OH and I are thinking of letting our house out whilst we spend a 6-12 months out of the country. At the moment we're just getting some quotes for getting the walls re-skimmed etc so we can decorate it but that's as far as we've got.

I'm aware we should get landlord insurance and a gas safety check but I've failed to find a definitive list as to what else we need to do.

If anyone has any info or advise then it will be greatly received.

Thanks

BitterAndTwisted

How attractive a prospect for a renter would you expect a six month tenancy to be? Moving, a deposit and a month's rent in advance are major expenses for most people.

If you have a mortgage you will need to request Consent To Let from your lender. Not all of them offer this.

Are you up to speed on all of the statutory responsibilities becoming a landlord entails?

Werdnal

You will need:

BTL mortgage or consent from your current lender (not all agree)
LL insurance
Gas safety certificate
To register someone to be your contact for the tenant in the UK, otherwise you cannot legally collect rent when your are overseas.
To register someone in the UK to pay tax on your behalf.
To arrange for someone in the uk to handle repairs or problems from the tenant.
To take a secure a deposit in a deposit protection scheme
To draw up a legally binding tenancy agreement.
To make a full and thorough inventory of all contents, and its condition
To understand that you cannot get a tenant to leave on a particular date - you may need to resort to eviction through the courts if your tenant(s) chooses not to leave on the date you need to move back in.
To keep sufficient cash in reserve for unexpected losses and repairs (what if tenant stops paying, trashes the house and leaves with half your furniture).

There is a very helpful post here by a member called GM, giving links to all the things you need to comply with. I will try to find it and drop the link in here, unless he beats me to it as he usually does!



PS Here is is http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.php?p=41160642&postcount=12

Read everything in this link and all the links it contains. If you have any specific queries about anything, come back again, but this should give you enough bedtime reading for the bank holiday weekend atleast!

sequence

You'll need alternative accommodation for when you get back and need to evict tenant ?

Please don't do a Suzy Butler

G_M

All you need to know is here.

edit - oops, you beat me this time Werdnal!

sharloid

Werdnal wrote: »

You will need:

BTL mortgage or consent from your current lender (not all agree)
LL insurance
Gas safety certificate
To register someone to be your contact for the tenant in the UK, otherwise you cannot legally collect rent when your are overseas.
To register someone in the UK to pay tax on your behalf.
To arrange for someone in the uk to handle repairs or problems from the tenant.
To take a secure a deposit in a deposit protection scheme
To draw up a legally binding tenancy agreement.
To make a full and thorough inventory of all contents, and its condition
To understand that you cannot get a tenant to leave on a particular date - you may need to resort to eviction through the courts if your tenant(s) chooses not to leave on the date you need to move back in.
To keep sufficient cash in reserve for unexpected losses and repairs (what if tenant stops paying, trashes the house and leaves with half your furniture).

There is a very helpful post here by a member called GM, giving links to all the things you need to comply with. I will try to find it and drop the link in here, unless he beats me to it as he usually does!



PS Here is is http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.php?p=41160642&postcount=12

Read everything in this link and all the links it contains. If you have any specific queries about anything, come back again, but this should give you enough bedtime reading for the bank holiday weekend atleast!

Nationwide allow me to rent the house out for up to 3 years if I send them a form an charge a small fee so that's covered.

Could I use a letting agent to cover the UK contact, inventory, receiving payment etc?

We thought of putting a few months worth of mortgage payments away just in case, but you seem to be able to get LL insurance with non-payment cover for about £20 a month, does anyone have any experience with this?

Thanks

googler

sequence wrote: »

You'll need alternative accommodation for when you get back and need to evict tenant ?

Please don't do a Suzy Butler

Seconded........

Please, as well as reading up on your own obligations, read up on this.

Forum search here on her name, although first thread got removed.

sharloid

googler wrote: »

Seconded........

Please, as well as reading up on your own obligations, read up on this.

Forum search here on her name, although first thread got removed.

I've had a search but all I seem to be able to find is that she rented her house out and when the tenancy agreement ended the tenant refused to leave? Is that what you're warning me of?

Werdnal

sharloid wrote: »

I've had a search but all I seem to be able to find is that she rented her house out and when the tenancy agreement ended the tenant refused to leave? Is that what you're warning me of?

Yes, but there was a huge court case and it was in the press for days. Maybe google it and you might get more of the story.

In reply to your query above, yes you can employe a LA to handle the letting, but remember there are no minimum qualfications to become an agent - you could set yourself up in business tomorrow! They make mistakes, sometimes very costly ones, and you would be taking the hit! It also doesn't guarantee you would get the property back any quicker as they are tied by the same rules and regs as anyone else!

sharloid

Werdnal wrote: »

Yes, but there was a huge court case and it was in the press for days. Maybe google it and you might get more of the story.

In reply to your query above, yes you can employe a LA to handle the letting, but remember there are no minimum qualfications to become an agent - you could set yourself up in business tomorrow! They make mistakes, sometimes very costly ones, and you would be taking the hit! It also doesn't guarantee you would get the property back any quicker as they are tied by the same rules and regs as anyone else!

It's a shame that something that could be quite simple can turn into something that's way too much trouble! I guess I'll have to weigh up the risks and decide if it's for us. If not then we may look to sell and then buy again when we return in a year, which of course comes with its own downfalls!

googler

sharloid wrote: »

I've had a search but all I seem to be able to find is that she rented her house out and when the tenancy agreement ended the tenant refused to leave? Is that what you're warning me of?

...and instead of following due process and the rule of law, she got a film crew involved, branded the tenant (with the aid of the TV journalists) a 'squatter' (which the tenant wasn't), and in summary, hounded the tenant out with the GMTV publicity. That's what we're telling you NOT to do.

The flipside to that is that following the due process and rule of law MAY result in you having a tenant overstay their welcome, and possibly your anticipated re-entry date; which is why you have to treat the rental of your home as a BUSINESS, and come to terms with the fact that while someone rents it from you it's no longer your home to use as you wish.

What had you planned to do with your furniture and personal effects whilst you're away? Were you planning on leaving your belongings in the house?

The two follow-on threads to the original discussion here (which got deleted) are

Tent Thread

Tent Thread Redux