Lodger may want to work from home

gingercordial

movilogo said:

If you want to restrict when a lodger should come and go out of your house, then probably you should not accept any lodgers. 

I agree you shouldn't be micromanaging your lodger's movements.  However I think it's reasonable to not want to go from an existing situation where you accepted your lodger based on them being out of the house for most working days, to one where they are working from home and there all the time.  Perhaps OP also works from home or is otherwise usually home on weekdays and picked this particular lodger because they'd have privacy during the days.  It's no reflection on OP or the lodger if circumstances change and it no longer works for one or both of them.  They can part company with good grace.

As somebody who now works from home for some of the week, it is undoubtedly more expensive in terms of household bills - power for my laptop and work mobile, lights and heating on during the day (in winter) when they otherwise wouldn't be, boiling the kettle for tea and coffee, use of the hob/oven if I decide to have hot food for lunch, loo roll and toilet flushes on the water meter!  It sounds petty but all adds up especially with the energy price rises (and in my case I used to have free commuting and subsidised lunch in the office, so no savings on that side for me sadly).  If OP is willing to accept the lodger working from home, an extra contribution towards bills would definitely be appropriate.

wilfred30

Jenniefour said:

I would not normally consider accepting a lodger who works at home (excepting lockdowns) as this does not fit with how I live. So I also need to consider whether I am willing to change that. But that is an entirely separate issue. 

In that case, I wouldn't even be considering it.

You will probably find that the increased costs won't be the only thing that starts to annoy you.

Ath_Wat

steve866 said:

Will the tenant be savings on any communiting costs if they work from home?

Absolutely nobody's business but theirs.

If the OP wants to charge the tenant extra because of the increased costs and inconvenience for her, that's fair enough.

If it were a matter of "You are saving money so I want a bit of it", that would just  beappalling behaviour.

Bendy_House

Jenniefour said:

I would not normally consider accepting a lodger who works at home (excepting lockdowns) as this does not fit with how I live. So I also need to consider whether I am willing to change that. But that is an entirely separate issue.

 

The usual expectancy in having a professional lodger is that they are out most days at work. If one of them changes that to be at home during the day, most days, then this will almost certainly have a significant impact on the running costs of the house, and I think it's absolutely fair for them to contribute enough to cover this increase in energy use.

As you say, tho', the 'how I live' part could be a different issue, although connected. If by that comment you mean that you are also at home during the day and you really want it to be your own personal space during that time, then that would suggest two things - one is that you already use extra energy during the day to keep yourself warm(?), so it would now be unreasonable to expect them to contribute more to something they aren't using in addition to this (except perhaps a small amount of electricity), but the other is that they are impacting on your lifestyle, in a way that wasn't anticipated by you.

That latter part alone is reason to have a 'chat' about your requirement, and that they may need to look elsewhere...

TheJP

Alfrescodave said:

If I was in your situation one question I wold be looking into is "does working from home affect your house insurance in any way"? I don't have the answer, others may wish to clarify. 

No WFH does not affect your home insurance as they are not trading. Perfectly fine.

silvercar

If you decide to take a lodger, then you need to accept it is their home as well as yours. You can't/ shouldn't make them feel an outsider in their own home.

For sure your decision making in who to select as your lodger may be influenced by their lifestyle, but you need to respect that your home becomes their home.

mobileron

So he will keep burglar bill away,collect parcels from Amazon and Hermes, id ask for a reduction if i was him.

TheJP

gingercordial said:

movilogo said:

If you want to restrict when a lodger should come and go out of your house, then probably you should not accept any lodgers. 

I agree you shouldn't be micromanaging your lodger's movements.  However I think it's reasonable to not want to go from an existing situation where you accepted your lodger based on them being out of the house for most working days, to one where they are working from home and there all the time.  Perhaps OP also works from home or is otherwise usually home on weekdays and picked this particular lodger because they'd have privacy during the days.  It's no reflection on OP or the lodger if circumstances change and it no longer works for one or both of them.  They can part company with good grace.

As somebody who now works from home for some of the week, it is undoubtedly more expensive in terms of household bills - power for my laptop and work mobile, lights and heating on during the day (in winter) when they otherwise wouldn't be, boiling the kettle for tea and coffee, use of the hob/oven if I decide to have hot food for lunch, loo roll and toilet flushes on the water meter!  It sounds petty but all adds up especially with the energy price rises (and in my case I used to have free commuting and subsidised lunch in the office, so no savings on that side for me sadly).  If OP is willing to accept the lodger working from home, an extra contribution towards bills would definitely be appropriate.

The thing is with this approach and if i was the lodger i would then look at what the other lodger does on weekends, are they in the house all day boiling the kettle, making food, watching tv, streaming etc. The WFH lodger could be out all weekend, does the OP need to then charge the other lodger more for being home?

The OP would need to determine what the extra costs are before increasing them as it needs to be reasonable.

lisyloo

The OP needs to determine what the extra costs are.
of the heating is on all day anyway (on a thermostat) then there should be no extra heating costs.

could it not be packaged into a normal annual rent review?
obviously taking account of the fact that bills have increased?

if the arrangement no longer works then perhaps it needs to end?

Van_Girl

silvercar said:

If you decide to take a lodger, then you need to accept it is their home as well as yours. You can't/ shouldn't make them feel an outsider in their own home.

For sure your decision making in who to select as your lodger may be influenced by their lifestyle, but you need to respect that your home becomes their home.

I don't think it's about making them feel an outsider in their home. Ultimately, it is for the homeowner to decide what they are most comfortable with. I currently have a lovely lodger who plans to stay for a while, however, it was an important consideration for me that he work outside of the home, as I currently work from home almost full time. If his situation were to change and he planned to WFH, then I would give him notice to leave, as I enjoy the space and require the privacy that I have when he is out during the day. 

While I want him to feel welcome while he is here, if things were to change, I wouldn't feel bad in ending the agreement rather than being uncomfortable in my own home - after all, it is only his home for the duration of the agreement