Lodger questions

[myidentitymycrisis]

I’m planning taking a Weekday lodger; I live in central London.
Currently cleaning out the spare room and I’m struggling with storage space.
Would I be ok to leave a few bits in the room (non personal) Stored on high shelves and under the bed? Or would a lodger expect a completely empty space?

you need to give them the room without any of your belongings in.

When I was a weekday lodger, my landlady had loads of stuff left in the room. I got one drawer, a small amount of space in the wardrobe and a small amount of space in the kitchen to store cereal etc. It wasn’t my home, it was somewhere I stayed during the week and I was only there to sleep.

Later on after I sold my house, I was a full time lodger somewhere else while I looked for a house in the local area and then I expected (and got) an empty room because it was then my full time home.

I think what you’ve described is fine for a Monday to Friday lodger but you can always mention it before they take the room to make sure.

@Talia99
Were you storing your things in the room on the weekends?
I’m asking trying to understand the idea. I’m thinking the room is ‘mine’ on the other nights, so I have use of it, or is the arrangement somewhere in between? Like you can have sole use of the room as if it were yours, but cannot stay/sleep on x nights?

If pricing low to very lo for the situation you could get away with leaving stuff. If pricing mid to high leave the whole room free and set up nicely.

@myidentitymycrisis, a big part of the reason I rented a room was so that I could leave things and didn’t have to haul it up and down on the train every week. I had my own bedding which I stripped off the bed and put in the one drawer allocated to me every Friday morning (unless I was taking it home to wash). I also left toiletries and a hairdryer in my drawer and a dressing gown and slippers in the wardrobe. I was allowed to use the washing machine but I never did - I took a small suitcase with me each week and it was easier to take the dirty clothes home with me (where I could put them in the normal wash and leave them on the dryer etc.). Other than the dressing gown, I didn’t leave any clothes there but I could have done if they fitted in the allocated wardrobe space. Oh, and I had my own towels which had their own rail in the bathroom (since I obviously didn’t want to be putting wet towels in with the bedding).

I was also able to leave a box of cereal in the cupboard and some butter and marmalade in the fridge and one or two items in the freezer. I used the landlady’s plates and cutlery and was expected to wash them up and put them away.

I didn’t have any expectation of exclusive use of the room on weekends - just that anyone staying in it wouldn’t use my stuff. In contrast, I would have been annoyed if someone used my room when I was a full time lodger (and I had a great landlady who would never have done so).

The other difference between weekday and full time was that I didn’t do any cleaning when part time - the landlady did it all, another reason my stuff needed to be out of sight.

I think it’s a matter of what is agreed - it was made clear to me that someone else might well be be using the room on a weekend and I never left any valuables there.

@Talia99
Thanks for your help
I currently really use this room for storage/drying /ironing and yoga. There is a desk and I sometimes set my sewing machine in there although I have now moved it to another room.

I have emptied the chest of drawers, there is hanging space and loads of shelves. I wouldn’t have a problem with lodger leaving their clothes etc,

I would dry my washing in there when they were not there.