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Original poster

taking in foreign students

10 replies

Threecrookedhearts · 07/04/2022 21:19

Has anyone done this? Stbxh has shafted me and is now refusing to pay half of the mortgage and half the loans (in my name). I have a spare bedroom and need some extra income urgently. Can anyone recommend a company/school to use and do you know how much they pay for bed and breakfast?

OP posts:

mumof1or2 · 07/04/2022 21:53

Can't help with names of companies but my friend did this and earned a fortune from it! She used to put about 4 foreign students in one bedroom (always groups that were here on fairly short term excursions) and she would send them off with a packed lunch every day and get £150 a week per student. They would always eat dinner out with their school so the packed lunch was the only food she had to provide.

PamDenick · 07/04/2022 21:59

It depends where you live and what colleges/schools are in the area. Some schools will insist on a solo student in one room with a study desk and you might need to provide 3 meals a day.
Some will allow two in a room.
See if there are language schools in your area, but then also check even the local sixth form or FE college.
It can be a very positive experience but you might need to check rules especially around food.

pumpkinpie01 · 07/04/2022 22:04

I used to do it years ago when I was a single mum . First student stayed for 6 months she was Swiss , her English was amazing and we still keep in touch now 17 years later . I had all sorts - precocious 13 year old boy, 2 teenage lads that ran off , a girl that liked to walk round half naked , and then the lovely ones - the ones that would sit and play hairdressers with my dd4 and would help me in the kitchen , the ones that were so polite and grateful . It's a totally mixed bag you really don't know what kind of person you are going to get . I'm glad I did it thou definitely more positives than negatives . I'm going back years thou so can't recommend any companies sorry .

JamMakingWannaBe · 07/04/2022 22:14

Not specifically for foreign students but try spareroom if you are looking for a lodger. There is also doctorinthehouse if you live near a big hospital and one for actors from theatre companies but the name escapes me at the moment.

JamMakingWannaBe · 07/04/2022 22:17

It might be homestay you are thinking of.

Original poster

Threecrookedhearts · 07/04/2022 22:23

Ooh thank you everyone. I live right by a large hospital- had no idea about that website. I'm in zone 3 London in a nice leafy area 5 mins from the tube so I'm sure a language school would want my room. I love the idea of the packed lunch only!

OP posts:

Haffdonga · 07/04/2022 22:52

We did it and had some lovely students who became friends. It was a few years ago and we got about £120 a week. Students had to have their own room and joined the family for all meals. We needed to be DBS checked, have landlord's gas certificate, interviewed and house inspected.
It worked well for us with teen ds of our own and we only took male students for bathroom sharing reasons.
The downsides are you have to cook a full main meal every night even if you're going out or feel like eating toast in front of the TV. I made a big effort to comply with the students' dietary requests e.g. halal which cost a bit . You have a stranger living in your house at close quarters so you're always in host mode with no break - no slobbing round in pjs, you need to keep on top of housework all the time and make friendly conversation when you feel like watching shit on TV.
Overall it was a good experience and we were very lucky with the students but it was hard work.

Haffdonga · 07/04/2022 22:53

Ours were foreign language students.

Campervangirl · 07/04/2022 23:05

Ooh my mum did this when she was in her 70s and still keeps in touch with some of her students.
She really enjoyed it and made money from it.
The first day she would have to take them to the university on the bus and collect them the same day to show them the route then after that they were on their own.
She made pack lunches and made lasagnes, stews etc, cheap filling meals for the evening.
It's a great idea, get on Google and see what's available in your are, my mum also took on the teacher's and the coach drivers

livingthegoodlife · 11/04/2022 19:51

I've done it. Find out how much the pay is. Some pay very little! £10 a day! I used to host 4 in 2 rooms for a higher paying school. Mine was only seasonal so maybe April to September. I used to earn about £3k a year in total.

Breakfast, cooked 2 course dinner, bed linen changed weekly & their laundry done weekly. Most stayed about 3 weeks.

It isn't without challenges as mentioned above, noisey students, they have curfews, some v dirty, etc. But on the whole, an enjoyable experience. We made lots of friends! I loved learning about foreign cultures. Sadly I don't have space now but I do recommend it.

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