AIBU to charge my DD rent to live in a flat I have bought?

Really, I find it very hard to understand a few of these replies. Do parents believe that responsibility stops when their children have finished school?
As I stated up thread, we paid for all our children’s living expenses while they were at Uni. We also paid for their tuition fees. Hands up, only 1 of them had the super high fees of today. This level of support was normal among their friends. My children did not work while they were at University. They did degrees that required full time studying. They both worked during the summer holidays.
I appreciate that not everyone can afford this but we started saving when they were young. We didn’t go on expensive holidays multiple times a year. We had one long haul holiday when they were teens but mostly we did things like Eurocamp. My sister, who is a single parent, went without a lot to pay for her child to go through uni.
It is not great for your children to start their working lives with debt. Not working while at Uni did not stop them getting good jobs and they fully intend to do the same for their own children.

You would probably have to fund something. So you would give her some money, that she then gives you back as rent and as an extra bonus you have to pay tax on it too. Utterly pointless.

It is absolutely expected that parents contribute to DC’s uni expenses.

Not sure why you’d be trying to make money off her when it hasn’t cost you a penny to buy this flat.

Lots of parents pay their student DCs rent and the DC lives on the minimum loan. Not much point in giving her money for rent and then her paying it back to you. You may have to pay tax on it as well.

She will still need to budget for the other bills, food etc. so the learn to budget argument doesn't hold either.

My answer would be different if she was working full time.

The state of students loans at the minute means I would do anything to keep my kids from needing to take those loans.

It sounds like shed need to take her tuition fee loan. So you can save her the maintenance loan. She can work to pay for bills and fun money and thats a big ask, it won't be easy.

Id use the rent from the other student to pay off her student loans. You can make overpayments at any point.

If she can leave uni debt free she will be in a fantastic position and shed have had to develop a work ethic to pay her way.

I'd do it in a heartbeat.

I wouldn’t charge while she’s still a full time student.
We always paid for DDs’ uni accommodation.

However after she’s graduated and is working, definitely.

Our DD just had the flat when at uni. You have not even had to work for it! Just take the rent from her friend. We didn’t charge other DD when she lived in it for a bit either. We gift DC £3000 a year for IHT purposes. It’s just how we manage money and we like to help.

Surely you would be paying her rent at uni? Sorry but confused here. It is usual for parents, who can afford it, to cover living expenses whilst a child is at uni. My parents did it for me and I will do it for my children. When they graduate that is different as they have to go out and earn and pay bills like everyone else.

Exactly what I came on here to say.

if she wants to live in the flat when she is working full
time, that would be a different matter.

This is great advice

It’s part of being the parent of a non-earning university student. There’s nothing high-horsey about that. One way or another OP will have to financially support her kids, doing it through rent free accommodation is one option.

@rwalker yes she'll forgo a bit of profit and?

To help your kids at uni is normal, and you do it if you possibly can.

She has the other student in the flat to profit from, and all the future students who will live there after her own DCs have completed university. Hope she intends to he a good landlord.

Whilst some are getting on there high horse about OP suggesting rent and she’s profiting from her daughter
at a guess in a university town a flat will be at least 120k
if op invested that she could get a return of approximately 5k there’ll be service charges And ground rent 1k any maintenance
as she’s renting there’ll be safety checks fees

so all in all to let her stay rent free will cost OP just short of £7,000 a year

In your situation I would not only let her live there rent free, I would encourage her to take a lower loan amount so as to reduce her overall debt after university. What is the point of having money, if not to help our children? Why are you seeking to profit from your own child, when you don’t need the money?

I simply don’t agree with the idea that young people won’t learn to budget if not forced to so. My parents helped support my brother and me while studying and then let us live rent free with them after uni so we could save for deposits. We are both responsible with money and own our homes outright in our 40s. We are very grateful to our parents and regularly try to treat them because we know what they sacrificed to help us. We also (unknown to our parents) save money to help them with care if needed when they are older. Because that is what families should do.

You worked and paid your way your whole life because you're older than her! She's 19 she hasn't had the chance yet! It's not any different

How can you even think of charging your own student daughter rent?

If she was earning a salary, then yes possibly, depending on various factors, but students don't really have an income do they? It's all borrowed on a student loan which will hang over them for decades.

You own this flat outright I think?

Can she reduce her loan by how much rent would be? That way she will have less debt? Will you be able to offer similar terms to any other DC?

Decent parents support their children through university, not profitier.

Personally, I don’t think I’d charge my daughter rent. I’d see it more as my responsibility to make sure she has somewhere safe, warm, and affordable to live if she needed it. If I were in a position to help, I don’t think I’d feel comfortable profiting from that — at the very least, I’d probably be putting aside anything she gave me for her.

Even if it’s “cheap” rent, over time that can still add up to quite a lot, especially for a student relying on loans, with interest building over the years.

I suppose for me it just feels a bit unfair to charge her, so I can understand why she might feel that way too.

I’d also be a bit concerned about how it could affect your relationship. What happens if she can’t afford to pay, or decides not to because she feels it’s unfair? Would you want to be in a position where you’d have to enforce it or even consider asking her to leave? Things like that will have a long term impact on your relationship.

There’s also the dynamic with the other student renting — if one person is paying and your daughter isn’t (or is paying less), I can imagine that might create some awkwardness or even resentment. I do realise that slightly contradicts what I said earlier, though!

Also, has she actually started uni yet? It’s hard to know whether she’ll enjoy it, want to stay, or even decide to change location. I’d be a bit cautious about buying a flat purely for her to live in unless you’re fully prepared to take on being a landlord and see it as a longer-term plan.

Assuming she needs a loan for living expenses too, you could charge her rent and then use that money to pay off part of her loan at the end of the year so she ends up with reduced debt. That way she is not taking on a big loan and then having lots of spare cash to fritter away whilst living rent free.

It would be utterly mad to charge her rent if it meant that she borrows more from student loans. I would also cover a portion of her bills if I could afford it, but not all as she needs some incentive to keep them low.

I wouldn't charge her rent in that situation, although she should pay her part of the bills. I'd expect her to benefit from taking a lower loan. Surely you want to help her get off to the best start?

Amazed at the posters saying charge her rent when it's been so well publicised about interest on student loans. Why would you charge her rent AND save it for her. The interest on any account you had for savings is going to be less than any interest on her loan.

And as for bills, you don't pay Council tax as a student providing her flatmate also a student but her and the flatmate should pay electricity / gas etc.

That's a good idea if their working but if they're effectively getting into debt to pay for rent for you to put into a savings ayfor them you're robbing Peter to pay Paul. It doesn't make any sense.