What would you do ? Rent or leave empty

restless6

I have come to the point where I am ready to rent out my old home , but I don’t know whether I shouldn’t leave it empty or not .
It has been empty since July

Mortgage and council tax and insurance will cost me £400 pcm
I can get £700 pcm rent but the added costs and responsibilities- not sure if it will be worth it so having cold feet

What would you do ?

xylophone

If you don't positively want to be in business as a landlord why bother?

And why leave a property empty rather than just selling it?

Cakeguts

You can get £700pcm if the tenant pays the rent.

saajan_12

restless6 wrote: »

I have come to the point where I am ready to rent out my old home , but I don’t know whether I shouldn’t leave it empty or not .
It has been empty since July

Mortgage and council tax and insurance will cost me £400 pcm - you'll still have most of those costs as long as you own the property
I can get £700 pcm rent but the added costs and responsibilities- not sure if it will be worth it so having cold feet - indeed, it is a lot of responsibility, but the Costs are likely fixed regardless, so you'll be 'profiting' £300 vs a £400 loss if you leave empty

What would you do ?

If you own the property,
* mortgage still due (though if you're on a residential, the rate may increase for a BTL)
* council tax will likely be 100% or even at a premium for an empty property in a few months if it isn't already (depending on the council)
* insurance still a good idea for an empty house (what if there's a burst pipe / fire / ground subsidence / vandalism..) and while you don't need landlords cover, the buildings cover will probably be more expensive for an empty property

So if you keep it empty, you'll still be spending ~£400 a month..

I woudl do (1) but if not then in order of priority:
1) sell and invest elsewhere with less responsibility
2) keep, learn the responsibilities and self-manage
3) keep and let through a fully managed / commercial let for lower rent (and taking on some of the risk blindly)

1974Marie

Hi. I hope you dont rent it out. I hate people that do that.

I worked hard all my twenties to make sure I got a good credit rating. Got my mortgage no problem. Problems started when I realised people in the same block as me were "sub let"

They dont look after their area. They make me sick. Landlords make me sick. People like you should sell their interest. Spare a thought for people like us.

restless6

Thanks for all the replies .
I don’t want to sell the house as I don’t know if my move is a permanent one. If I sell and I need to move back in the future I won’t be able to afford it .
I’m renting now so I understand the views of tenants Too as I am now one myself .

I’m not sure what the comment about subletting means as I don’t think that is what I am doing

restless6

Cakeguts wrote: »

You can get £700pcm if the tenant pays the rent.

Do you think most tenants don’t pay their rent ? I mean you can always read horror stories but everyone I know that rents has always paid . I wouldn’t dream of not paying mine either .

Sibz

restless6 wrote: »

Do you think most tenants don’t pay their rent ? I mean you can always read horror stories but everyone I know that rents has always paid . I wouldn’t dream of not paying mine either .

Cake doesn't seem to like tenants.

The council tax - wouldn't the tenant take on the council tax if the place was let out? Council tax is usually the responsibility of the resident (when there is one).
If you let it out you would be sub-letting. The previous poster possibly lives in a block of flats where some have been bought by people playing at being a LL and let out to people who tend not to care about the place (as they don't own it) - and while it shouldn't be the case, it can often make the flats a less enjoyable place to live. It seems to be a growing problem

elsien

restless6 wrote: »

Thanks for all the replies .
I don’t want to sell the house as I don’t know if my move is a permanent one. If I sell and I need to move back in the future I won’t be able to afford it .
I’m renting now so I understand the views of tenants Too as I am now one myself .

I’m not sure what the comment about subletting means as I don’t think that is what I am doing

What timescale do you have in mind to decide if your move is going to be a permanent one?
If you need to move back have you factored in how long it may take to get any tenants out if you want the house back for yourself?

restless6

Oh right I see . I guess a flat could bring different issues but mine is a house in a very nice area. I go back every few weeks to tidy the gardens etc .
This will sound really thick but what is the difference between letting and sub letting then ? I thought I would just be letting my house out .

restless6

elsien wrote: »

What timescale do you have in mind to decide if your move is going to be a permanent one?
If you need to move back have you factored in how long it may take to get any tenants out if you want the house back for yourself?

I am five months into a two year contract so I will decide at the two year mark I guess.
It does concern me if I get tenants and then I need to move back that I won’t be able to ask them to leave.

Maybe having the house unnocupied is the best way forward for now.