Contemplating a Lodger

DietIrnBru

Comms69 said:

DietIrnBru said:

Recently moved into a new flat - literally on the cusp of the lockdown beginning. I am eager to pay down my mortgage as much as possible in the first five years. I can afford to overpay by about £200 pcm on my own salary. However, I am contemplating renting my room out to a lodger. I wanted to gauge what the experience has been like for other live in landlords. Also, what is the experience of setting ground rules etc? Is it best to broach it outright and say what mutual expectations are? 

Your room, or your spare room?

Brock_and_Roll said:

We had an in situ lodger when we purchased the house. Had never met him so bit weird but the money helped pay down the mortgage. Previous owners told us he was a nice bloke and this was the case. Still good friends now 10 years later - but if you have another adult in your house there has to be a bit of give and take. In his case, it was his preference for larger ladies which necessitated replacement of some fixtures and fittings!!

Lmao. Case in point for why never to write a post at that time in the morning. It’s my spare room, yes. 😂

Comms69

DietIrnBru said:

Comms69 said:

DietIrnBru said:

Recently moved into a new flat - literally on the cusp of the lockdown beginning. I am eager to pay down my mortgage as much as possible in the first five years. I can afford to overpay by about £200 pcm on my own salary. However, I am contemplating renting my room out to a lodger. I wanted to gauge what the experience has been like for other live in landlords. Also, what is the experience of setting ground rules etc? Is it best to broach it outright and say what mutual expectations are? 

Your room, or your spare room?

Brock_and_Roll said:

We had an in situ lodger when we purchased the house. Had never met him so bit weird but the money helped pay down the mortgage. Previous owners told us he was a nice bloke and this was the case. Still good friends now 10 years later - but if you have another adult in your house there has to be a bit of give and take. In his case, it was his preference for larger ladies which necessitated replacement of some fixtures and fittings!!

Lmao. Case in point for why never to write a post at that time in the morning. It’s my spare room, yes. 😂

Just checking   You could look at offering it to locum workers at the local hospital? Generally they'll pay more, but will be there shorter periods.

Any friends who are looking to move out, either relationship breakdowns or need temporary place to stay - i mean you have to be sure you'll not risk the friendship, but it can work well

nyc_451

I live in a small two bed flat, had 4 weekday lodgers (short term) and the current one is full time. Overall a good experience except for the first lodger, we ended up on bad terms. To me, the money is worth the hassle.
You will learn what you like and dislike after you share your home with another person. I use a contract printed off the SpareRoom, agree on 2 weeks notice, take a month's deposit and keep it in a separate account but do not use the protection scheme,  no lock on lodger's room. I agree on house rules verbally and tend to be more forgiving to good lodgers, eg my current lodger is the best one I've had so I wouldn't want to bother her with any little things that I'd do differently around the house. I also had a guy who lost his job and left without a notice but I gave him his full deposit back since he was very tidy and respectful.  
As suggested earlier, search up 'lodger' on this forum, lots of useful info.