MN Landlords : Would you ask a prospective tenant this?

[InAQuandry2019]

Rental house currently on market. Have been seeing prospective tenants. One is very keen - a mum with her 15 year old son. The house is very close to the son's school.
The mum has a 'big job' and says she travels a lot for work - up to a week at a time.

Could I reasonably ask if the teenager will be left home alone during these times? Given the proximity to the school, I'm worried the house would become 'party central' in her absence.

I’m rather surprised you think he would be left alone for up to a week. I don’t think her child care arrangements are your business. She was daft to even mention this to you!

I think it's a fair point - unlikely he is left alone, but if his mother thinks he is sensible and can be trusted then who knows? Down the line when he is older this is probably going to be more likely. Presumably she has been renting elsewhere and references can be provided?

Why not ask who will be living there with her son whilst she is away?

Bubbles - well that was my first thought, that it's her business, but actually it may affect my insurance as currently it covers adult tenants and their dependents.

I don't want to fall out with my neighbours either (terraced house) as they are very helpful.

I feel I need to ask the question for my own piece of mind, but not sure how to word it!

I think you frame it that for insurance purposes you will need to know if the place will be unoccupied while she is away and if she tells you someone will be staying with the child then you need to take advice as depending on the frequency they could be classed as a tenant themselves.

I am a long term landlord, and I ask any questions I like, if the tenant doesn't like it then they look for something else.
I have a house up for rent at the moment, for various very valid reasons we cannot accommodate children, states quite clearly on my ad.
A very nice couple came round and were in agreement with everything, and as a bye the way, "I do have an 11 year old, that's ok isn't it?"
Ask everything you want to know @InaQuandry2019, its amazing what a tenant doesn't tell you until its too late.

@trimtops - oh, yes, we had one of those at the weekend... ours is definitely no pets - very clearly stated - even asked in the prescreener questions. Nice couple, very interested. Got to door to show them out and she got her phone out, opened photos and said - "we've got these two cute chihuahuas, they're really small, well-behaved, that won't be a problem will it?"

I don’t think her child care arrangements are your business.

Well yes they are if they could impact on OP’s property and insurance.

I wish someone had been stricter with my mother when she left my dad and dragged me to a flat when I was 15/16, and then pissed off for weeks on end leaving me on my own during my GCSEs.

Loads of kids from school kept turning up all hours of the day and night - I couldn't control it, the landlords were furious and took it out on me, and my mother was away having a ball in bloody America. It was shit for me.

So people should ask about school kids, yes.

It's about welfare as much as insurance. What happens if the DC gets locked out? Broken into? Spooked?

I live next door to students now, normally 18/19 years old, and I've seen them regularly flood the bathroom, lose keys, set smoke alarms off, get locked in bedrooms (!), and have guests damage the property. It's like my own doorstep soap opera. And these teenagers are legal adults.

Thank you FannagBeg - yes, these are exactly the sort of things I fear. As I live very locally to the property I'd also worry I'd end up being called out all hours of the day and night!

I have my own teens and there's no way that they'd even like being on their own for a week.

I suspect she has some arrangement in place (she seemed a sensible sort!) but I've emailed her to ask what arrangements she makes when away on business anyway.
Incidently, I spoke to my insurance company and they confirmed that any damage done by a confirmed tenant or their guests wouldn't be covered, so if there was a massive party and the place was trashed by a bunch of 15 year olds I'd have to recover costs through the courts .

The OP didn’t mention insurance in the first post. I would be careful about how you ask but in the circumstances you will just have to say he cannot stay in the house alone if that invalidates the insurance. Perhaps a relative comes to stay?

you need a different insurance policy - sounds like that one has a malicious damage exclusion. That's a major vulnerability because a pissed-off tenant can destroy your house. Not saying this one would (although something doesn't stack up so I'd move on) but it is too chancy.