Letting a studio in the garden

[wherehaveallthegoodfolkgone]

Hello, looking for some advice please. Ex DH built a large studio in the garden while we were still married and often slept there through the acrimonious end stage of our relationship. It's well built and has a kitchen and bathroom. I'm low on finances and wondered how if I need permission from the council to rent it?

If so, is it easy to obtain if the building is in excellent order? Would separate council tax be needed on it ? I live in the London suburbs and have nosey, nasty neighbours to factor in.

Thanks for the advice

Does it have planning permission as a dwelling for living in? If not you'll need to get it.

Can you access it without coming through the house?

I suspect you might be liable for separate CT on it whether you let it or not.

Yes it can be accessed separately.
Ok thanks both.

Be very careful who you let it to.

Because of high rents for houses and flats people are looking at alternate accommodation such as yours because the rent is lower.

Shelter the charity for the homeless are advising people who struggle with references etc to get others to rent property and then illegally sublet to the person who may have 'problems' and could cause you a whole lot of trouble.

Thanks for the advice DeCaray. In the past I've used Openrent for another let and that worked out quite well.

Air b&b? At least they'd go home and you may not be stuck with them forever.

you might be able to advertise it as a lodger which means a less complex contract (not a separate dwelling for bills & tax) and easier to ask the tenant to leave if you need to.

you can also do AirBnB for a max of 90 days per year without planning permission (I think). but the cleaning / change-overs can be a lot of work.

Yes I've wondered about Airbnb but hesitated because I'm nowhere near a station and really in the suburbs of London...

Air bnb is perfect for this - you can set it to let for a whole week so it cuts down on cleaning

Loads of people would want it, people between properties, contractors. If you're in the suburbs then you're near a bus stop right?

I've had tons of clients who've stayed in air b nb between lets.

Thanks Laurie! This is inspiring. Will definitely look into it

I THINK to be classed as a lodger, the accommodation has to be attached to your home and there needs to be shared facilities, such as kitchen.

If it was built as permitted development, without the need for full planning permission, it will definitely need planning permission to be rented out as a separate dwelling or holiday let/Air BnB.

If it was built following the grant of PP you will need to look at the PP to see what the conditions of the PP were. It is likely that the condition state that it can only be used for purposes incidental to the enjoyment of the dwelling/ ancillary to the residential use of the dwelling and cannot be let or sold as a separate unit. If this is the case, then you will need to make an application to relax the condition(s).

Thanks seeline, that sounds like a real palava. It was built according to regulations without permission needed