To increase the rent?

[Dickensian]

Just that really. I'm an accidental landlord. Have lovely tenants - an elderly couple in their late seventies who have lived in the small house for 4 years. They are my first ever (and last) tenants. I will sell the house once they are no longer there. They love the place and expect to be there 'forever'. Before moving in, they had fallen on hard times for various reasons and would never have passed official rental agent tests, and a previously undeclared dog appeared (it's fine), but have always paid their rent on time. I have never increased the rent, they pay what they did when they moved in (£850). I don't have an agent but looking at market rents in my area I would say that £1000+ is the going rate for a similar type of property..

I actually have no idea about their financial circumstances but presume they wouldn't be able to/ want to buy the house.

The problem is that my BTL mortgage deal is coming to an end. From making a small profit, I will start to make a loss.

The UK inflation calculator shows that prices in general have increased more than 25% since they moved in.

My gut feeling is to look at an increase of 8-10% and absorb some of the cost myself. Or not increase it at all, but (being brutal) they might live in the house for another 20 years so that would be 20 years of loss which isn't very sensible.

So which option would you take:

1. No increase at all (and make a loss) YABU
2. Increase by 8-10% and review again in a couple of years
3. Increase by 8-10% and start reviewing every year to keep pace with inflation
4. Increase by more than 10% (up to 25% even) to bring rent up to market rent and nearer the price it was in real terms 4 years ago. Review annually in line with market rent.

It does nothing of the sort. I was an ‘accidental landlord’ - I bought my home to
live in, not to rent out . Then I had to relocate for work. I couldn’t have afforded to rent somewhere to live close to my work without some rental income from the property I owned. It’s got nothing to do with ‘owning a decision’, as you put it - it was a simple practicality.

Years on, I own BIL property I bought for that exact purpose - therefore no accident. Is this explanation simple enough for you?

You decided to rent out your house rather than sell it. That was a decision to become a landlord.

Of course it is, when you have a good tenant you look after them.
Paying the rent on time is worth alot .
They won't be able to afford a rent increase and you might lose your tenants.
Then the house will be empty and losing money.
Really blunt and unhelpful advice.

You’re missing the point.
There’s a difference between buying a house just to rent out vs renting out a house have instead of selling.

Although I think you know that, and are just being deliberately contrary…

I do not think there is a difference at all. In both cases you are making a decision to become a landlord. It is a choice.

Why is it always the tenants (who in most cases can't afford to save a deposit to buy their own home) who have to pay the increased costs? You're getting your mortgage paid and will own the house so you're hardly "making a loss" if you have to pay a tiny bit of that yourself.

You mean the working class help the middle class get richer.

I have not got a chip on my shoulder. I do not need self discipline, I choose not to be a landlord.
But I also hate the hypocrisy where some landlords expect tenants to be grateful. Landlords are running a business. It is a business arrangement. They are not running a charity.

As I made clear, I couldn’t afford to rent somewhere else and leave my property empty whilst trying to sell. My only option was to be a landlord - no choice about it.

An empty rental property at the moment? Have you not seen what’s happening in the rental market?

@WomanStanleyWoman2 You could have sold the house.

Over the course of a weekend?

I know in Corrie people make an offer for a house in Monday’s episode and are moved in by Friday, but real life isn’t like that.

You were learned about and were forced to move Cities for a job over the course of a weekend? If so that was very rough and most people would have ended up unemployed.

I think you need to find a way yo rise this to market rent or sell the house

You cannot operate at a loss
You cannot operate at their rent barely covering BTL mortgage as you have landlord responsibilities

And why rent this property without a profit?

It's definitely time to explore i options
As an older couple they can apply for sheltered accomodation. Which will be even cheaper

No, I got a new job, gave a month’s notice, left one job on the Friday and started a new one on the Monday. Even if selling my flat and buying another within a month had been feasible, it wouldn’t have been financially viable.

So you made a decision to apply for a new job in a different City.
That is fine, I am not criticising. I am simply saying you made a decision that had consequences for your accommodation. That was a choice, there is nothing accidental about it.

You are just being deliberately obtuse now. There’s no accident about that.

I say a combination of 2/3. Talk to them and let them know that you're going to need to increase the rent because of inflation and rising mortgage costs. Say you're looking at raising it by £50/month and see how they react. Let them know you'll review it again in a year or two.

You don't have to make a loss to subsidise someone's living arrangements, and anyone expecting you to do so is an idiot. It's painfully clear that some posters on this thread have never owned property.

Someone has made a very good point about the mortgage provider requiring that the rent is a % over the interest. This is going to force a minimum rental value. Or force a sale.

Good tenants are gold dust, increase by whatever to not make a loss and tell them why. Don't try and go for more if you want to keep them

How are you an accidental landlord with a buy toilet mortgage on the home?

The same way several people have already explained.

Also, that must be one hell of an expensive toilet.