Types of let

Ever thought about renting out your spare room but don’t want to lose it completely? Maybe you want to use it for friends and family occasionally or just don’t want someone else in your house all the time. There are other options to getting in a regular lodger, here are a few to consider :

Monday to Friday Letting

If you live in somewhere where a lot of people travel to for work you might want to consider renting a room from Monday to Friday only. Lots of people move job but don’t want to uproot their families or simply don’t want to live in a city. This is particularly relevant for London with people regularly commuting from places such as York or Manchester to work in the capital. I even know one person whose wife and children lived on the Costa Del Sol while he lived in London Monday to Friday and flew back for the weekend!

Fractional rents, as they are known, are often cheaper than a week’s worth of train tickets and can save commuters several valuable hours each day. The income generated can still be tax exempt under the Rent A Room scheme and you get the added benefit of getting the weekend to yourself. You may even still be able to use the room as a guest room at weekends (but make sure the tenant knows this is the case if you intend to do so!).

Events and Seasonal Letting

You can also generate some extra cash by letting a room during an event. Great examples of this are Wimbledon and the Edinburgh Festival but the forthcoming 2012 London Olympics has also made this a hot topic for many in East London. In some cases people even move out for a short period and rent out their whole house.

Seasonal lets such as these can often generate more income per week than a standard let as you’re renting at a time when demand is particularly high. On top of this you get your home to yourself for the rest of the year.

We’ve put together a list of a few events to get you thinking but there are thousands of possibilities. The same tax rules and thresholds apply to seasonal lets so make sure you’re covered.

Students

This falls under seasonal letting really but it’s a different type of seasonal let. Generally students tend to live in shared houses but there’s still a market for lodgers, especially amongst post-graduate or final year students who need the peace and quiet to work in which you just don’t get in the average student property. Bear in mind that students will generally need somewhere to work as well as sleep so a bigger room with a desk may well be needed but, on the plus side, you’ll generally get the place to yourself over the holidays. Contact the accommodation officer at your local university or college and find out what the demand is like and an idea of the average going rate.