A year off (1 Viewer)

Jan 18, 2010
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We are thinking about taking of for a year in the MH we have a very small mortgage on our house and our intension was to rent it out for the time we are away.We know we have to inform the mortgage lender of our intensions and take out landlord insurance is ther anything else and further hoops we have to go through

Bill
 

BwB

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If you're intending to use an Agent then they will sort out the short term tenancy agreement for you. If you don't intend using an agent then you may find it useful to join a landlords association during the period of rental so you can make use of their forms and cheaper vetting services.

It may be better to let a house unfurnished. You know about the insurance and you may have to pay tax on income earned from the letting (less ALL your letting expenses).
 

Allanm

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All I can think of is to look for a property maintenance company in case anything breaks while you are away. If you let the house through an agency, this is usually something they can supply, but check what they will be charging.
Whatever you do, good luck. Sounds like a great idea
Allan
 
Apr 22, 2013
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We are thinking about taking of for a year in the MH we have a very small mortgage on our house and our intension was to rent it out for the time we are away.We know we have to inform the mortgage lender of our intensions and take out landlord insurance is ther anything else and further hoops we have to go through

Bill

If you have gas you need to have it inspected/tested annually and hold a certificate to show all is well.
You must ensure that any deposit taken from the tenant is protected, and notify the tenant in the proscribed way.
You must "keep the property in repair" so you might need to make arrangements with some local tradesmen. So if the tenant calls on Christmas eve and says "I've no hot water" what are going to do? or less urgent "The fence has blown down".

You could put it in the hands of an agent, but expect a few extras.

Renting is not for the faint hearted. Get some good legal insurance, evicting a tenant isn't easy. Remember non-payment of rent isn't grounds for eviction. A lot of landlords insist on a property owning guarantor.

Gordon

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estcres

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Oct 9, 2007
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I should think the only real thing you need to worry about is collecting/forwarding your mail.

The more you can do online the better, less "snail mail"

One thing I would be concerned about is letting the property, ensure you get good management agents.
 
Feb 26, 2013
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Remember non-payment of rent isn't grounds for eviction. A lot of landlords insist on a property owning guarantor.

That's not quite right however the easiest route is to have a 6 month assured shorthold tenancy and let it become periodic at the end of the fixed term, that way if you have a difficult tenant you can serve a Section 21 notice if you want them out and as it is a mandatory ground you will be awarded possession if you are at the end of the fixed term. That's a very simplified account and it is rarely that simple. If you get a good tenant you are laughing, if not you will regret ever renting it out. A guarantor is an excellent idea and gives you some protection. They are talking of introducing tenants payment history into credit reports from this year so you will be able to see if someone is a good payer but that hasn't happened yet. I deal with these issues on a daily basis and it isn't always just a case of having a bad tenant as a previously good tenant can fall on hard times so ideally you need to make yourself familiar with the Local Housing Allowance and "bedroom tax" so you are aware of what Housing Benefit your tenant would be entitled to if they were to become unemployed. The more knowledge the better! :thumb:
 
Last edited:

estcres

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Remember non-payment of rent isn't grounds for eviction. A lot of landlords insist on a property owning guarantor.

That's not quite right however the easiest route is to have a 6 month assured shorthold tenancy and let it become periodic at the end of the fixed term, that way if you have a difficult tenant you can serve a Section 21 notice if you want them out and as it is a mandatory ground you will be awarded possession if you are at the end of the fixed term. That's a very simplified account and it is rarely that simple. If you get a good tenant you are laughing, if not you will regret ever renting it out. A guarantor is an excellent idea and gives you some protection. They are talking of introducing tenants payment history into credit reports from this year so you will be able to see if someone is a good payer but that hasn't happened yet. I deal with these issues on a daily basis and it isn't always just a case of having a bad tenant as a previously good tenant can fall on hard times so ideally you need to make yourself familiar with the Local Housing Allowance and "bedroom tax" so you are aware of what Housing Benefit your tenant would be entitled to if they were to become unemployed. The more knowledge the better! :thumb:


Can you please clarify a point mentioned in your post.

I thought the so called Bedroom Tax only applied to tenants living in the public sector and not in the private sector.

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Chris

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There was a post above that said rent arrears isn't a ground for posession.

If it isn't I have repossessed hundreds of properties improperly:Doh:
 
OP
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Jan 18, 2010
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There was a post above that said rent arrears isn't a ground for posession.

If it isn't I have repossessed hundreds of properties improperly:Doh:
This is what is concerning me in a quandary just might leave it empty

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Feb 26, 2013
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This is what is concerning me in a quandary just might leave it empty

Do you have anyone you know you can rent it to? Or a tenant who can happily provide a guarantor is a fairy safe bet. The income you could generate could fund an even longer trip in the motorhome!! :thumb:
 
Mar 23, 2012
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You will have to decide whether to use an agent to find a tennant and if you want them to manage the letting (collect the rent arrange repairs etc).

We have rented out property for a number of years and don't bother with an agent for management in the past ....a long time ago.....we did but they were hopeless when the rent was late and wanted a big chunk of the rent. It might be worth asking your friends locally if any rent out property and get some recommendations or they might even manage it for you for a smaller payment. If you are in a good area to let out property advertise it yourself first...get an idea of the market rent or a few agents to view it and give an idea of the market rent.


If you have any queries send me a message

David

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OP
OP
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Jan 18, 2010
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You will have to decide whether to use an agent to find a tennant and if you want them to manage the letting (collect the rent arrange repairs etc).

We have rented out property for a number of years and don't bother with an agent for management in the past ....a long time ago.....we did but they were hopeless when the rent was late and wanted a big chunk of the rent. It might be worth asking your friends locally if any rent out property and get some recommendations or they might even manage it for you for a smaller payment. If you are in a good area to let out property advertise it yourself first...get an idea of the market rent or a few agents to view it and give an idea of the market rent.


If you have any queries send me a message

David
David thanks for that and I will send pm as the weeks go on .if you don't mind

Bill
 

Chris

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This is what is concerning me in a quandary just might leave it empty

You can get rent insurance.

It's not cheap but if you need certainty ...
 
Apr 22, 2013
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It was me that said "non-payment of rent isn't grounds for eviction"

Of course things are more complex than that but for a little more detail.
Eviction must be ordered by a judge. The grounds for evictions are set up in the legistration.
Ground 10, some rent arrears, and ground 11, persistent rent arrears, are only discretionary. The Judge doesn't have to order eviction.
Ground 8 however, serious rent arrears, where the tenant is at least 2 month in arrears is mandatory. The judge MUST order the tenant out.

For the landlord the problem is one of timing:
At least 2 months to get into arrears
Time to prepare the court application, say a couple of weeks at best.
The court gives the tenant a month to reply to the application.
The the time until a court slot to become available let's be optimistic and say another month.
The court is most likely to give the tenant a month to vacate the house.
Then if the tenant doesn't leave there will be say another month to fire up the bailiffs.
The the landlord will have to put the house back into a habitable condition before reletting.

Anyone been counting the months?
All that without the tenant playing games and making partial payment on the court steps meaning the procure needs to be re-started.

This isn't a landlord forum, Its a Motorhome Forum and I was therefore only giving the OP a heads up on what could be instore, not a answer to a landlord's accreditation exam question.
Gordon

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OP
OP
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Jan 18, 2010
538
138
Airdrie Scotland
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It was me that said "non-payment of rent isn't grounds for eviction"

Of course things are more complex than that but for a little more detail.
Eviction must be ordered by a judge. The grounds for evictions are set up in the legistration.
Ground 10, some rent arrears, and ground 11, persistent rent arrears, are only discretionary. The Judge doesn't have to order eviction.
Ground 8 however, serious rent arrears, where the tenant is at least 2 month in arrears is mandatory. The judge MUST order the tenant out.

For the landlord the problem is one of timing:
At least 2 months to get into arrears
Time to prepare the court application, say a couple of weeks at best.
The court gives the tenant a month to reply to the application.
The the time until a court slot to become available let's be optimistic and say another month.
The court is most likely to give the tenant a month to vacate the house.
Then if the tenant doesn't leave there will be say another month to fire up the bailiffs.
The the landlord will have to put the house back into a habitable condition before reletting.

Anyone been counting the months?
All that without the tenant playing games and making partial payment on the court steps meaning the procure needs to be re-started.

This isn't a landlord forum, Its a Motorhome Forum and I was therefore only giving the OP a heads up on what could be instore, not a answer to a landlord's accreditation exam question.
Gordon
Me thinks i will leave it empty
 

Chris

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It was me that said "non-payment of rent isn't grounds for eviction"

Of course things are more complex than that but for a little more detail.
Eviction must be ordered by a judge. The grounds for evictions are set up in the legistration.
Ground 10, some rent arrears, and ground 11, persistent rent arrears, are only discretionary. The Judge doesn't have to order eviction.
Ground 8 however, serious rent arrears, where the tenant is at least 2 month in arrears is mandatory. The judge MUST order the tenant out.

For the landlord the problem is one of timing:
At least 2 months to get into arrears
Time to prepare the court application, say a couple of weeks at best.
The court gives the tenant a month to reply to the application.
The the time until a court slot to become available let's be optimistic and say another month.
The court is most likely to give the tenant a month to vacate the house.
Then if the tenant doesn't leave there will be say another month to fire up the bailiffs.
The the landlord will have to put the house back into a habitable condition before reletting.

Anyone been counting the months?
All that without the tenant playing games and making partial payment on the court steps meaning the procure needs to be re-started.

This isn't a landlord forum, Its a Motorhome Forum and I was therefore only giving the OP a heads up on what could be instore, not a answer to a landlord's accreditation exam question.
Gordon

I was merely making a point.

Not provoking a sulk:Doh:
 

lorger

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Hi Bailey

I am a landlord and thnik its the best thing i ever did, although i dont know if i could let someone stay im my own house although if you intend selling it to downsize it might not matter.

I have either been lucky or im a good landlord as i havent had any problems and my tenants never move out. A few things to think about if your doing it yourself for instance i take out boiler insurance on all my properties with 24 hour call out this cost me about £15 a month but give me piece of mind and that includes the service although i have to pay £40 for the landlord certificate and to have the gas fire serviced. I have insurance for buildings which cost around £100. I dont know about your area but im sure its the same all over scotland you also have to register as a landlord with local council in Dumfries this cost £55 plus £11 per property for 3 years. you will also have to factor in the price of advertising this can be a couple of hundred and then you need to get a lease drawn up or you can buy them, if you decide let me know and i will let you have a copy of mine minus my account details :ROFLMAO::ROFLMAO:.

If you go down the route of an agent then they will take around 10% per month so worth ading it all up and seeing how much you will make and if its worth the hassle for just one year, also your mortage lender may change your interest rate to a buy to let one.

On the other hand if you leave it empty make sure you inform your insurance company as there may be a limit on how long the property can be empty.

As for your idea of downsizing go for it we did four years ago and havent looked back since, the first few months we hated it and thought what a mistake, we left a nice modern house with three bathrooms lovely consevertory and all mod cons for a 2 bedroom 1933 cottage with one bathroom remembering i have a 16 year old daughter. the big advantage is we dont have a mortage and although we already owned one flat we then purchased another with some of the money left over and since have now bought another house that we plan to move into once i get it renovated and should make a tidy profit at the same time all still mortage free, well worth it

so downsizing is the way to go
 

Chris

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No you missed the point it's all the hassle you have to go through

No I didn't miss the point , unless the "point" is dont be a Landlord.

It's up to you ultimately , but don't be put off by purely negative comments.

Some tenants do pay rent:thumb:
 

Minxy

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My advice would be think long and hard about letting someone you don't know loose in your home! It is quite a different proposition to let out a property which you never intend to live in again, but one which you will be returning to, with all your memories etc could prove quite upsetting if the tenants haven't looked after it properly or damaged stuff.

We have a rental bungalow and we bought it originally with the intention of living there but as things have worked out we didn't need to downsize and release money from our current property so have stayed put an just rent the bungalow out instead but it has been a real pain the bum and not something I would take on again, we've only kept it on as it is giving us a very good rental 'profit' - we get £268 max net profit each month, after deduction of agents fees, insurance and all other expenses related to the property, which equates to £3,216 max net profit a year. We re-mortgaged our own home to buy it so can offset the whole purchase costs of the property and kitting it out against tax and we only have a low interest rate of 0.74% above base. Overall we are 'making' a return of around 3.3% - if we had invested the money it cost us to buy including mortgage arrangement fee and buying costs we could probably, at the time, have got a much better return rate but then the capital value of the property was going up (remember when that happened!!!). I'm not complaining as we haven't lost out, unlike a lot of other people, but it isn't something I'd do readily again.

Before deciding on whether or not to actually go ahead with renting your own home out, sit down and work out whether the clear profit you will get from doing so will really make it worth the hassle especially if you have to do some repairs/replacements when you get back - you also need to think about what you'd do with furniture etc as, if you'd put it in storage then the cost of doing so would need to be taken into account too.

One other thing, if you find you do NOT like touring all the time and want to return home, if you have a tenant you're stuffed!

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sedge

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... or of course you are ill or something and it would just be easier living in a house again for a bit.

And then of course you would still have to put stuff in storage - all personal possessions, prized stuff for either value or sentiment, etc. Electrical items and suchlike.

Personally, there are things in our house we probably wouldn't have had, had we had a young family at home. Cream curtains on the patio window for starters ! LOL Children/teenagers (and some adults!) do not know how to 'sit' down on chairs, do they? Sort of chuck themselves approx. in the direction of the settee and if their full weight lands on the arm, it's near enough. When it eventually parts company and falls off, they seem surprised .... Ditto their beds.

Go walkabout for a couple of months at a time and get a trusted friend/neighbour/family member to keep an eye on the place.
 
Apr 22, 2013
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No I didn't miss the point , unless the "point" is dont be a Landlord.

It's up to you ultimately , but don't be put off by purely negative comments.

Some tenants do pay rent:thumb:

I think the point was don't be a casual landlord.
We bought our first investment property in October 2000. Two more followed in 2001, we have left it at that since.

In those years we have had a few brilliant tenants, a lot of reasonable ones and three that spring to mind as having cost us significant money which there was no chance of recovering.

The damage done by one lot was sickening, but had it previously been of our own home it would have been emotionally devastating. However over the years we have made quite a bit of money, but I would say you need a number of properties in order to treat them as a portfolio, where you win some and you loose some. The net result is hopefully a gain.

Gordon
 
Jan 10, 2013
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We rented our house out for 12 months last year whilst we were abroad...............never again! Once you have added up the costs of letting agent, electrical/gas certificates, redecorating, carpet cleaning, landlord insurance and (the biggest costs) removal and storage for all your own furniture and personal possessions it really doesn't make financial sense. Not to mentioned the hassle when, as happened with us, the central heating broke down and the built in fridge/freezer stopped working. Each time there was a problem the letting agent was on the phone to us despite us being 2,000 miles away. If your property is purely a rental investment then it's financially viable but if it's your own home then it's a totally different situation.

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OP
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Jan 18, 2010
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Year off

Having saw all the replies of which I'm very grateful i don't think il go down the route of letting my house out.When you consider the extra costs involved with insurances and Agents fees and the constant worry of the tenants,once again thanks for all your input

Bill
 

wanderer

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Having saw all the replies of which I'm very grateful i don't think il go down the route of letting my house out.When you consider the extra costs involved with insurances and Agents fees and the constant worry of the tenants,once again thanks for all your input

Bill

Good decision hope you can still travel
 

Hollyberry

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I would definitely recommend using an agent. Shop around for a good one with reasonable charge. Takes all the hassle out of dealing with tenants.

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