The children have left in the last few years and I now live alone in a 4-bed house with a big kitchen/ diner/ family room, a living room, a dining room and two bathrooms. I'm about to retire and my plans include travelling regularly for the next 2-3 years. It seems daft to continue to live here, but I don't have any strong urge to live anywhere else and around here a 'nice' smaller 2-3 bedroom property would actually cost very little less than this. By the time I'd paid estate agents, moving fees, solicitor and Stamp Duty it would cost me money to downsize. So for the time being I plan to stay here.
I'm wondering about offering a room (or two) via the rent-a-room scheme. I live in a desirable area within easy travelling distance of a thriving city with two universities. I also happen to know several academics, a couple of whom thought PhD or mature students might make suitable tenants. They can have a bedroom and a second room, either upstairs or downstairs, as a study or living room if they want. Plus a bathroom for exclusive use. We'd share the kitchen/dining/ family room for cooking and eating and so on, but I would expect them to use their own space at other times.
I've never had a tenant before. I have no idea what people expect. I had a friend live with me last year, for a few months, while her home was renovated, and we had some serious boundary issues. She seemed to live in my kitchen/ diner/ family room and I found it quite difficult to get away from her. Any advice about setting boundaries and where to draw the lines would be appreciated.