Can lodger work from home?

user1977

FlorayG said:

WFH is fine; I'm less sure about running a business. I would be more worried about the local council charging you business rates instead of council tax

Even if they're somehow registered at the address, whatever the lodger is doing on their laptop is still obviously ancillary to the domestic use of the property, you'd have to do something much more significant to swap that around.

LightFlare

Also worth considering is if the lodger can do this extra work without impacting on the other lodgers/household

subjecttocontract

I'd have thought there was a long queue of people wanting to be your lodger. If so, why spend time and effort checking if this one person is acceptable to all parties ? Why not just let to someone who isn't WFH ?

silvercar

LightFlare said:

Also worth considering is if the lodger can do this extra work without impacting on the other lodgers/household

Only issue I can see is someone working from home needing to keep the house, or at least their working room, warmer during the day. It may even offer a slight discount on house insurance if the property is occupied during the day.

LightFlare

silvercar said:

LightFlare said:

Also worth considering is if the lodger can do this extra work without impacting on the other lodgers/household

Only issue I can see is someone working from home needing to keep the house, or at least their working room, warmer during the day. It may even offer a slight discount on house insurance if the property is occupied during the day.

They may want/need extra space that impacts on the other lodgers for example - need more info really.

As above - might be easier in the long run to just pick another

1404

subjecttocontract said:

I'd have thought there was a long queue of people wanting to be your lodger. If so, why spend time and effort checking if this one person is acceptable to all parties ? Why not just let to someone who isn't WFH ?

You would think that, but it's not the case. And I've spoken to other people who have lodgers and they are struggling to find lodgers now too. It's unusually quiet on that front. 

Added to the mix is the fact I can only have a female as there's an existing female lodger sharing the bathroom. So that further limits my market. 

1404

I have now spoken to my insurance company and ran past them the working from home of the Lodger. And also myself, as I apparently didn't put that on the application despite myself working from home half the time. A £10 fee later and I am told that's all fine.

Also, another potential lodger who makes physical items (drawings and props) occasionally is also fine, I was told. I just wanted to check that as those are physical items. But the insurer said it's ok.

The main thing is visitors to the house (of which there are none whatsoever). That seems to be the biggy. 

1404

FlorayG said:

WFH is fine; I'm less sure about running a business. I would be more worried about the local council charging you business rates instead of council tax

Crikey. That sounds extreme. I pay £219 a month as it is!

1404

Bigphil1474 said:

If the WFH is just online, as above, not an issue. I wouldn't think allowing them to register their business at your address is a good idea. If they are a limited company, they can register at all sorts of places, but I think it may put some liability on you that you don't want. Best telling them to register at an accountants or other business address.

Local councils aren't usually bothered for owner occupier homes unless there will be an increase in traffic from people visiting or potential nuisance to neighbouring properties as a result of the business. For me, it wouldn't be a business premises unless the business was the primary activity and not an incidental activity, and they aren't really 'running' a business there.

The two potential lodgers in question are sole traders who earn £1000+ a year. But not enough for a limited company.

This must be quite common these days? 


Edited: they earn £1000+ per year. Not per month. From their Sole Trader dealings. They each report to HMRC (so they say).

1404

user1977 said:

FlorayG said:

WFH is fine; I'm less sure about running a business. I would be more worried about the local council charging you business rates instead of council tax

Even if they're somehow registered at the address, whatever the lodger is doing on their laptop is still obviously ancillary to the domestic use of the property, you'd have to do something much more significant to swap that around.

Yes, it's very much a domestic property, of course. We all have external jobs but work from home too. I work from home half the time too (not self employed, but for a company).