Renting out your home is a very smart move in many ways. When you have found your way onto the property ladder it is certainly a good idea to stay there. Whether you are moving abroad or buying another property, renting your home can bring you many financial benefits.
Indeed, renting is something we have considered doing ourselves during the peak holiday seasons here in Newcastle. Before you get into renting however, there are a few fundamentals to consider. Let’s discuss.
1. Understand the Safety Precautions
If you want to become a landlord, you won’t just be able to achieve this overnight. There are several legal processes and safety measure to research before you delve into this new domain.
Look online for tips for owning a rental property including specifications for locks, windows and lighting. You will soon understand what it takes to rent out your home so you don’t get caught short with unknown mistakes.
2. Choose Your Tenants Wisely
Renting out your home is quite a personal venture, so you want to make sure you are choosing the right people to live in your house. Meeting the prospective tenants beforehand is always a good idea, rather than talking to people and negotiating online or over the phone.
You will soon get a vibe for the type of people they are and whether they will treat your family home with the respect you would expect.
3. Go Through an Estate Agent
Although it costs slightly more money, you’re going to want to go through an estate agent rather than rent out your property as a private landlord. If you are moving abroad or away from the area, you won’t be on hand to deal with queries or issues around the house, but an estate agent can act as a middleman between you and the tenants.
When the tenants have someone local to communicate with it makes them much more patient, than if they are waiting for you to get back to them for something urgent. Estate agents and letting agents can also advise with many of the legal issues and can really take so much of the pain away from renting your home.
4. Check Rental Prices in the Local Area
You don’t want to be selling yourself short and putting the price too low on your property. Check out how much similar properties cost in the area and match your rental prices to these.
It is also likely that the tenants will have done their research so they are unlikely to choose your house if it too overpriced.
5. Monitor Your Property Carefully
It is only natural that you’re going to want to keep an eye on your property, but make sure you do this in a respectful way. Give tenants at least twenty four hours notice before you come and inspect the property, otherwise they may feel that their privacy has been invaded.
Specify the notice period you need to give them in their contract and there will never be any disputes. Tenants have a lot of rights so it’s important you know what is expected from you as a landlord. Check out the private renting page on Gov.uk.
Got Something to Add?
Do you have experience renting a property as either a landlord or tenant? We’d love to hear what you think are the fundamentals. Share your thoughts in the comments section below.
Until next time, thanks for reading.
Helen, Nial and Lewis.
Welcome to Pikalily, an award-winning food, travel and lifestyle blog. We are Nial and Helen, a happily married couple from Northern Ireland, who share a passion for food and travel among many things. We became parents to our beautiful boy Lewis in 2017. Follow our adventures through the blog.
