Taking lodgers - mortgage company said no

Lisa_Loon

Hi, this is my first post so I'll just jump straight in.

We have a "Together" mortgage with Northern Rock - we have been here nearly 2 years. Our friends (a couple) are looking for a place to live because they can't afford the place they are renting. We have a spare room and on New year's eve I casually offered them the room. I didn't think they would take us up on the offer but they said they were interested.

However, I spoke to Northern Rock and they will only allow us to have 1 lodger. We are on a debt management plan with CCCS so the extra income would be very useful in helping us to pay off our debts quicker.

Does anyone know why we're only allowed one lodger? We would only be letting one room and we would be charging them the same as what we would charge a single person (we said £350 pcm including bills). I have told them I would see if there was a way around it as they are both disappointed, but I don't want to put our home at risk.

Any help would be gratefully received, especially as I'm a noob.
Thanks

Lisa_Loon

anyone?

silvercar

just do it.

A lodger has very little rights compared to a tenant, so I don't see what the problem is.

Dan_Collins_2

Well this is a tricky one. I am not sure if the new HMO rules apply to a lodger, that could be one reason. You will have more than one person living as a lodger and this may be the thing that brings HMO in to it. You can find more via your local council but it is become a pain in the butt!

However unless you stop paying them how will they know?

brightbuy

Mortgage companies are reluctant to officially acknowledge a request for anyone to move into a property they hold an interest in whether paying some form of rent or not. In theory it could create a number of legal issues with regard to the conditions of the legal charge and occupation rights.

In practice, we know that many people do it and don't even inform their lender..

wishiwasarichgirl

how would they know if it was one person or two?

I would just go for it (wouldn't have entered my head to even mention it to the mortgage company)

seven-day-weekend

We have had lodgers on and off for most of our married life and no longer have a mortgage, but it never entered my head to mention it to the Building Society.

Our son now lives in the same house and has two lodgers.

I can't see how they would ever know whether you have one or two lodgers.

sammyjammy

I agree with the comments already made, I've had lodgers in the past and it would never have occurred to me to inform my mortgage company, as long as you are still living in the property I don't see the problem, make sure you give them a rent book and record the payments in it, make it clear whether rent includes telephone usage and how it will work with sharing kitchen etc.

Sam

Badger_Lady

You do have one rent-paying lodger. The other one's just living with you for free

Lisa_Loon

Dan_Collins wrote: »

Well this is a tricky one. I am not sure if the new HMO rules apply to a lodger, that could be one reason. You will have more than one person living as a lodger and this may be the thing that brings HMO in to it. You can find more via your local council but it is become a pain in the butt!

However unless you stop paying them how will they know?

this is what my husband has said but I don't want to put our home at risk.

Lisa_Loon

Thank you all for your advice about this :beer:

I have spoken to our insurers and they said nothing will change, so I might tell my mortgage co that we have one person lodging with us. Do we also need to notify the council? And will council tax payments change?

thanks again.