Short/Long term let- house share - what do you think?

[edayhouse]

Hello
I have a question for you guys....

I am thinking about buying a 3 or 4 bedroom house in Thurso so that i can eventually do B&B however i am not ready for that level of commitment just now and was thinking that initially i could rent out each of the rooms to students at the college or long term lets - i.e. each person gets a room and can use kitchen and bathroom facilities without me actually living there although i would check the house every day and be available for any queries etc.....

However when i have spoke to people about this they have said that there is not really a need in Thurso for this sort of accomodation anymore...what do you guys think?

Was thinking around the £150 mark per room let

Thanks for listening to my ramble!
Would love to hear your views good or bad!!!

[Tristan]

The cost of setting up the house as an HMO would take you a while to recoup at that rental level.

[EDDIE]

i would say there is a market for it there is plenty students looking for accomadation were they can share with there mates but u reallty need to have a proper lease aggreement with the tenents and you would have to have the house at a certain standard for tenenants.
But if i was a tenant i would take a very dim view if the landlord was checking up on me everyday that would wind me up u only really need to inspect the property twice a year and if u dont live in the property u have to give them written notice when u want to view the property u cant just go there anytime u want tenants have rights.
You have to read up in all your rights as a landlord first £150 a month for a room to let is actually quite cheap but i would expect a sitting room as well
the other thing as well u would have to get them to pay there rent directly into another bank account rather than handing u money so then u have record of there payments so if they stop paying u as a some bad tennants do u can prove it and take them to a small claims court
But i would i would say the buy to let market is a lot harder to get into and there is more regulations in it were u have to be clued up on it before u start

[EDDIE]

the other thing is well what i would say to u is i wouldnt think it would be the kind of thing were its a nice little earner every month i think were u would make your money in that is 5 to 10 year down when u sell the house you will make a very good profit due to the price of the house going up in value

[j4bberw0ck]

Edayhouse, there are a fair few potential pitfalls in what you're thinking of. To avoid ending up with tenants you can't evict, see a lawyer about Short Assured Tenancies. To avoid breaking a raft of laws as a landlord, see your local authority about registration and any bye-laws that dictate things like smoke alarms and what-have-you.

[brokencross]

Agree with EDDIE you would not get many takers if you said you were going to check the house every day.
My 3 daughters have recently finished the student house/flat experience. In each case it was in the written agreement that the landlord had to give written notice of any intended visit; there was an understanding that the landlord could call unannounced but they were not obliged to let them in to the house. They had to pay a substanial bond before moving in which was repaid at end of tenancy assuming there was no damage or breakages. There was aslo a very comprehensive inventory listing every single bit of fixtures and fittings. Their rent was in the region of £54 per week for each person in house, gas electricity water etc was aslo paid by tenants. The tenancy was also for a full 52 week year so even when the students were off from college university and maybe gone home, the landlord still gets the rent.
As EDDIE says private landlording is a mass of pitfalls so I would get reading and find out all the rights of tenants and the full obligations of the landlord.

[edayhouse]

Thanks guys for your replies - much appreciated - lots to think about and lots of paperwork/legislation etc to look into.

Might be easier sticking with the B&B idea!

[brokencross]

Probably lots of Health and Safety Issues with B & B as well and if successful, very hard work. Good luck anyway