Lodger Licence Fee Increase - Your Opinion Requested

doodling

Hi,

I wouldn't get into the detail of why you are changing his rent - you don't want to get into a detailed argument about how much he is using.

I would simply say that your costs have increased, that you need him to pay more money and that you believe the revised cost is still competitive. 

I also wouldn't get into saying something about fair use in the contract (who gets to define that?) - I would have a general requirement for him to act in a reasonable manner in minimising the use of utilities and any consumables you supply.  The wording doesn't really matter as you are never going to rely on it (it is more to set expectation but it is too late to do that with this lodger anyway) - you are going to give him notice if his usage becomes excessive and you can do that "because you feel like jt".

Ryan_Holden

Gosh, thank you again for all these replies. The breadth of opinion is exactly what I wanted to get.

stuhse, I'm not putting it up specifically because of the change in his circumstances, but for the change in his usage (which I can see is part of his circumstances) but also because everything has gone up as well. His agreement was 6 months then switched to rolling. The issue is, I'm not sure I want to face a summer of Air Conditioning, gaming PC and high water usage at my cost. I'm almost pre-empting further increase in electricity use going forward.

I also don't view the rental income as profit. It subsidises my mortgage and I only took the lodger on after my relationship failed and I was left with the house. I want him to be comfortable and happy here and not feel like a cash cow, but equally I don't want to keep paying more and more for his presence.

propertyrental, he is now in a 1 month rolling contract after a 6 month licence agreement. And you're right, I like the guy so I would prefer him not to leave but equally that is his right.

steve866, thank you for your feedback.

doodling, that was also my thought, that I don't really need to explain in detail why. I think I just like the idea of being transparent as our agreement, while formal and written, has a casual and friendly vibe about it. But ultimately you are right, everything has gone up and his usage has. I'll give some thought to the use of acting reasonably with energy and water as well.

All, it seems as though my raise amount and reasoning doesn't generally feel unreasonable to anyone here so that's made me comfortable enough to issue it. Thank you for taking the time to help me.

housebuyer143

Is it worth increasing it by the amount specified and tell him you are happy to review it once he returns to employment and his usage is lower at it was previously. 
Maybe speak to him about the Aircon and let him know that if he wants to use it in the in summer then he would be expected to pay for the additional usage. Do you have a smart meter so you can see daily usage on your online account?

Aircon units are about 2kw minimum so that's going to be 88p an hour... If you don't do something it will easily cost you all the rent a month paying for him to run it.

FreeBear

Ryan_Holden said: All those appliances I listed are mine and shared so I am already well aware of their usage. Typically on my own the house is about 200-220 kWH a month. When he moved in that increased to 240 and has steadily risen to about 270 kWh over the last year, per month. I've happily accepted that because he must be allowed to live, but this last month when he's home that's jumped to 370 kWh, which is almost double what the entire house uses including all those appliances.

And this is pre-AC.

20KWh is not far off the increase I saw with the current lodger. Going up another 30KWh is quite a jump, but another 100KWh on top is excessive in my opinion - Is he running an electric heater in there as well as the gaming computer ?

Certainly, a discussion needs to take place about energy consumption as well as a review of the rent.

Ryan_Holden

FreeBear said:

Ryan_Holden said: All those appliances I listed are mine and shared so I am already well aware of their usage. Typically on my own the house is about 200-220 kWH a month. When he moved in that increased to 240 and has steadily risen to about 270 kWh over the last year, per month. I've happily accepted that because he must be allowed to live, but this last month when he's home that's jumped to 370 kWh, which is almost double what the entire house uses including all those appliances.

And this is pre-AC.

20KWh is not far off the increase I saw with the current lodger. Going up another 30KWh is quite a jump, but another 100KWh on top is excessive in my opinion - Is he running an electric heater in there as well as the gaming computer ?

Certainly, a discussion needs to take place about energy consumption as well as a review of the rent.

So as I said, his PC is a monster, huge power requirements, multiple monitors, lots of individually powered peripherals, and his room is regularly very hot because of it. But I allowed that to slip because you know, that's his hobby and makes him happy. I am certain that this recent jump is simply because he is home all the time and gaming all day.

And I really do mean all day, he will seldom leave his room over 12 hours other than to use the bathroom and eat and will be gaming the rest of the time. Maybe that's it, ask him to be more conscious of it.

I will ask about a heater, maybe there is another piece of kit I'm not aware of.

housebuyer143, that's also a good idea, but I would have to find a way to monitor how often he uses the AC. That's quite easy though, I can hear it through the floor when its' turned on. But again, I don't want to be the licensor that is keeping tabs on every thing he is doing as that definitely would make me, in his shoes, feel uncomfortable. But perhaps I can say a flat rate and just take my chances. I can't have it consuming all my licence fee though, he may as well not be here at that point.

RetSol

Having rented out the spare room in my flat over a number of years in the past, my experience is that the arrangement rarely survives a substantial change in one party's circumstances.

It may be just be my experience but I have found that what works under one set of circumstances rarely works under another.

Here, the lodger has lost his job, fuel costs have risen etc and it may be that the combined effect of a number of factors is putting more strain on the arrangement than it can bear.

When drawing up a lodger agreement, I suggest stating in it that the rent assumes utility costs of £x and that, if those costs increase, you may need to raise the rent. Also, provide for a periodic review of the rent, in any event. 

saajan_12

I wouldn't really worry about a fair use clause - a lodger rents part of your house which is presumably not on a separate meter, you can't really calculate their usage, let alone define what is excessive. So that clause would be unenforceable. Instead, you could 
- keep a short enough notice period and increase the rent if you think usage is high
- prohibit certain appliances eg AC units. Note you'd need to make sure the property can be kept at a reasonable temperature without these. 

sourpuss2021

It’s odd that you call it license fee, rather than rent.   I understand that as a lodger he will have a license, not a tenancy.  But still, it’s rent that he pays you.

Personally I would find it unpleasant to have a lodger who lives online, whether that was gaming or being on their phone. 

Aside from the rent, isn’t another reason to have a lodger that it gives you a bit of company, someone in the house to talk about your day with?

But it sounds like this guy has “checked out” of everyday reality, and prefers to live in his computer games instead.   

Why don’t you give him notice and get someone else who is less problematic?  

km1500

I would echo thr above - get someone else

ArbitraryRandom

Ryan_Holden said:

FreeBear said:

Ryan_Holden said: All those appliances I listed are mine and shared so I am already well aware of their usage. Typically on my own the house is about 200-220 kWH a month. When he moved in that increased to 240 and has steadily risen to about 270 kWh over the last year, per month. I've happily accepted that because he must be allowed to live, but this last month when he's home that's jumped to 370 kWh, which is almost double what the entire house uses including all those appliances.

And this is pre-AC.

20KWh is not far off the increase I saw with the current lodger. Going up another 30KWh is quite a jump, but another 100KWh on top is excessive in my opinion - Is he running an electric heater in there as well as the gaming computer ?

Certainly, a discussion needs to take place about energy consumption as well as a review of the rent.

So as I said, his PC is a monster, huge power requirements, multiple monitors, lots of individually powered peripherals, and his room is regularly very hot because of it. But I allowed that to slip because you know, that's his hobby and makes him happy. I am certain that this recent jump is simply because he is home all the time and gaming all day.

And I really do mean all day, he will seldom leave his room over 12 hours other than to use the bathroom and eat and will be gaming the rest of the time. Maybe that's it, ask him to be more conscious of it.

I will ask about a heater, maybe there is another piece of kit I'm not aware of.

housebuyer143, that's also a good idea, but I would have to find a way to monitor how often he uses the AC. That's quite easy though, I can hear it through the floor when its' turned on. But again, I don't want to be the licensor that is keeping tabs on every thing he is doing as that definitely would make me, in his shoes, feel uncomfortable. But perhaps I can say a flat rate and just take my chances. I can't have it consuming all my licence fee though, he may as well not be here at that point.

From what you're saying, you have a good relationship and it could well be he's spending so much time in his room because he doesn't want to feel in the way (not being used to being home all the time). 

If I were you I'd be doing as others have suggested and proposing a rate 'which can be reviewed in 6 months' that you think will cover the increased costs. 

I wouldn't personally discuss his habits or usage in relation to the increase, but rather use the reasonable justification of energy prices, mortgage rates and general inflation. If you suggest you have faced an increase in costs then, assuming he views your relationship the same way, he would hopefully think it reasonable to help out. 

If he says he can't afford the increase (which unemployed he might struggle) then have you considered a rent decrease with energy bills not being included (split them 50/50)?