Finding 'good' tennants

[Cogcog]

I can almost hear the laughter!

My place is up for sale but we are moving out anyway mid November. If we can't sell we would consider renting but the horror stories put me off.

The house's decor is quite fragile (e.g. Laura Ashley wall paper that marks and tears if you do anything other than look at it and the lounge is 24 rolls of paper if a clumsy guest with an overnight bag isn't watched). We would be prepared to accept a tennant well below the market value if we felt they would show the approriate respect but how far do you have to go, and indeed is any sort of chance of finding someone very likely to be like that? The rent could easily be outweighed by a single careless overnight bag or glass of wine.

is it best we don't even try to find someone?

[shirt]

if you're that bothered, and can afford not to, i wouldn't rent it.

i think if you do want/need to let it out then it would probably be better for you to look privately within your own circle of friends/relations for suitable tenants. more of a guardian paying token rent if you will.

pursuing tenants commercially sounds like too much of a gamble for you.

i vetted quite heavily via an agency. took 6weeks to find someone but they seem decent enough and move in wednesday. no mortgage payment for me = bigger car budget!

[Johnboy Mac]

Rent the house at the market rate and spruce up (if required) when selling.

[Manks]

Cogcog said:

I can almost hear the laughter!

My place is up for sale but we are moving out anyway mid November. If we can't sell we would consider renting but the horror stories put me off.

The house's decor is quite fragile (e.g. Laura Ashley wall paper that marks and tears if you do anything other than look at it and the lounge is 24 rolls of paper if a clumsy guest with an overnight bag isn't watched). We would be prepared to accept a tennant well below the market value if we felt they would show the approriate respect but how far do you have to go, and indeed is any sort of chance of finding someone very likely to be like that? The rent could easily be outweighed by a single careless overnight bag or glass of wine.

is it best we don't even try to find someone?

You can look at this several ways.

1. You are clearly quite precious about your home and therefore the PROBABILITY is that you will be unhappy with how most tenants will leave it. Some tenants are exceptionally good but the majority expect to leave some wear and tear and you won't like it. So don't rent it out.

2. An empty property is a crime risk and you will, after a period of exemption, have to pay council tax on it. Furthermore your insurance company will withdraw elements of your cover (usually) if it is empty for more than about 3 months (varies by company). You will also need to heat it. So, best case scenario you will be picking up many of the usual running costs of the property even though it is empty and there is the risk that some little scrote breaks in an nicks every bit of metal in the place which (and I refer to my point about insurance) you may have to pay to replace yourself. So rent it out*.

3. Accept that you are fussy about your home but that leaving it empty is a bad idea. So, give it to a decent letting agent who will do proper tenant vetting and do a detailed inventory. Then ask every penny of full market rent with as large a deposit as the market will bear. Then accept that you will have some wear and tear, but the money you will make / costs you will save by letting it will be enough to buy some new Laura Ashley wall paper if needs be.

I know what I would do, what you should do depends upon how you feel about the options.

• Bear in mind that tenants have a legal right to quiet enjoyment of the property, so the right to do sale viewings would need to be pre-negotiated and care taken not to be too intrusive.

[Wings]

Manks said:

You can look at this several ways.

1. You are clearly quite precious about your home and therefore the PROBABILITY is that you will be unhappy with how most tenants will leave it. Some tenants are exceptionally good but the majority expect to leave some wear and tear and you won't like it. So don't rent it out.

2. An empty property is a crime risk and you will, after a period of exemption, have to pay council tax on it. Furthermore your insurance company will withdraw elements of your cover (usually) if it is empty for more than about 3 months (varies by company). You will also need to heat it. So, best case scenario you will be picking up many of the usual running costs of the property even though it is empty and there is the risk that some little scrote breaks in an nicks every bit of metal in the place which (and I refer to my point about insurance) you may have to pay to replace yourself. So rent it out*.

3. Accept that you are fussy about your home but that leaving it empty is a bad idea. So, give it to a decent letting agent who will do proper tenant vetting and do a detailed inventory. Then ask every penny of full market rent with as large a deposit as the market will bear. Then accept that you will have some wear and tear, but the money you will make / costs you will save by letting it will be enough to buy some new Laura Ashley wall paper if needs be.

I know what I would do, what you should do depends upon how you feel about the options.

• Bear in mind that tenants have a legal right to quiet enjoyment of the property, so the right to do sale viewings would need to be pre-negotiated and care taken not to be too intrusive.

Manks, I entirely agree with you, and congratulate you on a quite brilliant post.

Being myself a landlord of some 15 years, and having been through some unimaginable situations, being a landlord is not for everyone, so as Manks stated, it must be your decision.

[mattdaniels]

You need to find people who want a home, not a house (or a "base").

That said, even if you find the best tenants in the world, no one will ever treat your P+J the way you think you want it treated so you need to expect to not get it back in the condition you hand it over in.

[Cogcog]

Johnboy Mac said:

Rent the house at the market rate and spruce up (if required) when selling.

I guess so. But all these posts suggest I am best getting rid. Once we are out the emotional attchment may diminish.

[Wings]

If you can allow yourself to detach yourself from the emotional attachment of the property being your home, then rent the property out.

Today I paid a visit to a block of four flats I own, a tenant who only recently moved into the basement flat, has at his own expense completely re-turfed the garden and planted an abundance of shrubs, bulbs and plants.

Pick the right agents, with your instructions that they should wait until they find the right tenant/s, then letting can be the right way for you to go.

My daughter several years ago was in a similar position that you now find yourself in, she then decided to rent her home out, and with the same tenant still renting her home, she was able to pay off her mortgage last Friday.

[Grayham]

Not all tenants are bad.

We have only had good ones.

As someone previously mentioned you need to make them feel it's going to be their home, not somewhere they are borrowing from you.

Our current tenants have put in a new fire place, re decorated, put a lawn down where there was once old paving slabs and put up a new fence. All at their own cost. We haven't put their rent up and probably won't for a long time.

[andye30m3]

I've had 3 different tenants in my flat, all have been very good so far, they're not always a nightmare.

It probably helps a bit that I've know the letting agent for years and we get on well.