To ask would you bother being a landlord in this situation?

[Letitrow]

I am fairly unexpectedly being posted abroad for 3 years with work, DH and our DC are moving too so our 3 bed house that we own will be essentially vacant for that period- we definitely want to move back there after this posting though so aren't looking to sell.

As we are in the fortunate position of having all expenses paid for the move, including not having to pay accommodation, I'd love to rent it out whilst we are away (rental properties are in great demand and short supply where we are) for a very small charge. Be more than prepared to invest of course to make sure it meets all of the standards for rental, the boiler is only a year old and everything maintained to a high standard and have family nearby who could help assist if anything needed doing 'in person' and we'd obviously pay for repairs etc.

Only issue is I don't want to come back at the end and have to go through a lengthy process to get our home back. Even if we were up front for the period it was available for I am aware there are (rightly) tenancy laws that mean it's not always that simple. There's also the risk of damage and stuff but that would be covered by insurance so not overly worried perhaps naively about that, and aware it's only a tiny minority where that happens.

Landlords or anyone really, would you go for it? It seems a shame to leave it empty (well just family and friends going to check on it periodically and run the water etc) for 3 years but similarly could it all go very wrong?

Also, if you have a mortgage then the lender might not agree to the property being let out.

My parents house was empty after their death, we were all abroad so selling was difficult when in different countries.

The local homeless used the garden as a hang out and almost set fire to the house.

Don't leave it empty is all I can say or throw some money at a local estate agent to at least keep you in the loop.

That’s rubbish, you can have your house back with no problem if you or a member of your family want to move into it, or sell it. No fault evictions have nothing to do with you requiring the house back. Don’t be frightened off by people spouting rubbish!

Lodger actually sounds like perfect scenario if you want to be back to visit family a few times a year.

I have been charged double council tax on an empty property before and home insurance wouldn't be valid. We went abroad for several months and decided the hassle and risks of renting weren't worth it (plus the house is old and a bit of a work in progress for us) but if I was going for longer than 6 months I think I would rent it

Don't bother, if you get a feral tenant it won't be worth it

Can you let it out / rent it out through work? More likely to find someone in a similar position who wants a short term tenancy & very unlikely to have issues with them leaving or paying rent

Evicting is really not that easy. Apart from the cost and the hassle of having someone in the flat who you now have a dysfunctional relationship with and who has possibly stopped paying any rent or taking care of the place, there are big backlogs in the courts and it can take a year to get them out.

Hi
we have 3 rental properties which we own outright following a lot of hard work to work towards a comfortable retirement,
We have 3 lovely tenants which we interviewed and have developed good relationships with these lovely people.
we know we are lucky, I wouldn’t use a rental agency, again we are lucky to have sons locally who can assist with any emergencies.
if you are in a similar position and have checked references and backgrounds, carry out gas and electrical annual checks and your property is at a high standard then it is good to rent when you are unable to occupy your property.
Its always a difficult decision but if your honest with your tenants and treat them with the respect they deserve then hopefully it can work out. Good luck.

Well I would rent it out BUT give about 10 months notice that you want to move back in and get the tenancy drawn up by an expert.

I moved abroad for two years and rented out my house. I rented it out through a major estate agent and even then double checked every tenant myself (the EA will do anything for a sale including trying to push a couple who were bankrupt, young person without a guarantor and a group of young people without a some person named as in charge).

If yours is a high end rental then I wouldn't worry about tenants overstaying. I did rent empty though and my friend who rented furnished in a similar situation (four years away! had the tenant move out and take the furniture with him!
put aside money to refresh after they leave as wear and tear is inevitable.
get someone to manage (a friend/relative). Always deal through that person or an agent.

rents are so high for eg in London that three years could be 150,000 before tax

You can also put a break clause in your two year contract at one year in case you want to come home early (or they want to leave).

Given that op asked the question in June last year, I imagine they've made their decision by now.

In a similar situation, we left ours empty. Then the pandemic hit, DH went back to help DD move out of her halls which were being closed due to Covid. The plan was that they flew back to be with me three days later… only there were no flights and they were stuck in UK for the next 6 months +

I'd rent it out, but I'd rent it via an agent.

My sister lives abroad and lets her house out to a local company which uses it to house staff on temporary placement - a bit like what your company is doing with you. Is that a possibility. You don't really want to risk squatters by leaving your property empty.

Another option would be Property Guardianship. This would probably be the better option.

ZOMBIE

So I don't even know how feasible this would be but yes it seems a shame that a house is going unused when someone could need it but the while system is f* up when you want to claim your house back that you feel like you need to give a years notice, and save any rental fees to cover the possible court costs

My wonder is could you rent it to a charity e.g refuge for domestic violence knowing that you would give them how ever much notice they would need that you are moving back?
It could be a negligible sum whatever works out best for both parties but maybe not renting directly to tenants would make it easier to claim possession back?

Do not be tempted to follow this advice :” you could give a small family the chance to live somewhere decent for three years at a low ish rent, why wouldn't you?”
At the end of the term the family would have nowhere to go that was comparable with your house and rent. You’d probably have a fight to get them out because, why would they go before they absolutely had to? I’ve been in this situation and it’s stressful and expensive and at the end of it they created a lot of damage out of spite. Be careful when it’s your family home, it’s very different from renting out a buy to let.

I think if you did this, you would need to give notice to the tenants at least 6/12 before your planned return, and accept that this would cause a shortfall in income, just in case you needed to start eviction proceedings.

Insuring an empty house can be very difficult to find an insurer. A good tenant will be an asset