Precautions you must take while renting your room to students

Posted under Advice by Michael

The soaring cost of living and the severe credit crunch is forcing many families to let a single room in their home to a student. Home owners are earning a good income by adopting this concept which was quite prevalent in olden days.

You can fetch an income of £4,250 per year without paying any tax. If rental income goes beyond £4,250, you can decide to pay tax on the rent amount above £4,250 or on the amount equal to rent income minus expenses incurred on maintenance.

You can let a single room or entire floor of your house provided it is not self content. The room which you would let out must be furnished. It is important to get the support of professionals in pre-screening of the prospective tenant for checking their bonafides. You must enquire in their college and speak to some references to verify the student’s credentials.

Those interested in letting their homes must attempt to get more details about the tenant such as how much time they will spend outside, where will they take meals or whether they would prepare it themselves. It is also important to know about the students’ hobbies, which may not be acceptable to you.

It is better to lay down rules in writing regarding visitors, late hour visits and payments. A formal contract must be signed between the owner and the lodger to avoid conflicts at a later date.

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