How much to charge my lodger (boyfriend)?

louby40

So hypothetically, if my boyfriend moved in with me how do I work out an amount to charge him?

I own the house (with a mortgage) and my 2 teenage sons live with me. I don't want him to go on any bills (apart from council tax of course) and food would need to be included in the amount.

My council tax would go up from £90 to £130. How can I work it out? What would be a reasonable amount per week/month?

Louby

zenshi

Do you claim any tax credits/child tax credit? If so, then the boyfriend would have to be declared on there and benefit would fall. That would have to be factored in

If he was a proper lodger with own room etc then there's a certain limit you are allowed to earn tax free from that rental. That would give you an idea of costs . Can't find a link just now tho.

louby40

No I don't claim anything other than child benefit, I earn too much!

tori.k

If its early days louby I personally would split the utility and shopping bills (Excluding mortgage) 4 ways then add on the difference between the council tax with him providing his own clothes and any extras like if he wanted a sky package, I would keep housing cost totally separate.

If this is an adjustment of a longer relationship after a settling in period I would probably just pool resources dependant on circumstances. This is what Dods (second husband) and I did, I have a small house that he has no claim on this will go to my children, the house that we plan to buy together the estate will eventually be split between his children and my own.

Not very romantic sadly but the practicalities do have to be sorted.

CIS

For council tax purposes he is jointly liable now he is resident so no matter how you split it between yourselves he is still jointly responsible for 100% of the charge.

Craig

louby40

We've been together 2 years. He spends most of his time here and is always buying bits of food and does 90% of the cooking.

I split with my ex (of 6 yrs) in 2013 and had a very nasty split. Thankfully I kept the majority of my equity and was able to buy this house. I want to leave it to my children.

When/if we ever were to get married I would again have to look into some sort of pre-nup to ring fence my equity.

Once bitten....reluctant to be financially involved with someone.

nkkingston

The main conversation to have with him is how much he's willing to contribute to the upkeep of kids that aren't his. If he's got a good relationship with them, he may be willing to go 50:50 with you on all of the bills. If they're still feeling out what kind of dynamic it's going to be - is he a parent figure, a friend, someone they only relate to through you... - then you'll want to look at only asking him for a quarter of the upkeep, depending on any additional costs he brings in. If he lives there long enough and contributes towards the mortgage, there may be some issues around gaining an interest in the house (question for the mortgage forum!), so you might need to take that into account.

louby40

My children are older teens. He's not responsible for them in any way - that's my job and I don't expect him to provide for them in any way.

They get on really well but he's just 'mums boyfriend'

kittykatneedscash

Hi Louby

Has he offered to pay anything or suggested an amount? My Boyfriend has been living with me for nearly 12 months and not contributed anything toward bills or any kind of rent. He earns double me so I do feel it is a little unfair. He is trying to sell his property so still has bills to pay there and mortage etc. I am hoping it will sell soon so he can start helping out a little with the bills and it is a struggle.

bargainbetty

kittykatneedscash wrote: »

Hi Louby

Has he offered to pay anything or suggested an amount? My Boyfriend has been living with me for nearly 12 months and not contributed anything toward bills or any kind of rent. He earns double me so I do feel it is a little unfair. He is trying to sell his property so still has bills to pay there and mortage etc. I am hoping it will sell soon so he can start helping out a little with the bills and it is a struggle.

Sorry, but you need to tell him that he needs to start paying towards the bills, regardless of the other property. You do not need to be 'keeping' him, and he should be paying his fair share of food, utilities and council tax at the very least.


To the OP, why not work out the costs you will incur in him being there, and a share of the bills? If you do not intend to ask him for a contribution to the mortgage, this could be either a fixed amount, or something you agree now but review in three months to see what the actual financial impact is.


Best wishes to you both

MyLastFiver

I had this with my GF when I moved in with her.

The short version was: She wanted me to pay "rent" on top of my share of the bills, but she didn't want me to have a future claim on the equity in the house (in the event we split up).

I told her that, if I were a rent-paying lodger, I would submit invoices for the decorating I'll be doing, the repairs, the patio she wanted me to lay, etc etc.

In the end we agreed I would pay my half of the bills and she would take care of the mortgage, on the understanding that it's *her* house and, if we split up, I'll just walk away.