A Landlord’s Guide to Student Lettings

September is an extremely busy time for a number of landlords as it’s the month where students move back to their university towns and into their private rented accommodations. We often hear scare stories about student landlords such as that it is an extremely difficult profession and that students are unreliable when it comes to paying rent. However, the reality is that being a student landlord can be extremely lucrative, so if you are thinking of joining the sector here’s some advice:

Know your Audience 

When most people think of students young, messy and loud generally come to mind, however don’t forget that this is a generalisation and that there are many different types of students. Of course, there are those that spend most of the day sleeping and their nights partying, however there are also students that spend their time in the library, playing sports for their university teams and even working to afford their degrees. If you are thinking of becoming a student landlord it’s important that you always keep this in mind and treat each set of tenants you meet the same way you would to non-students.

Research the Laws 

Most of the time student properties contain a number of students and so they become what are referred to as Houses in Multiple Occupation or HMOs. In order to let a HMO you need to apply for a licence from your local council otherwise you will be letting your property illegally. When applying for your HMO the council will decide whether the property is suitable for the amount of people you are planning to let to and if it includes enough space, kitchen facilities, toilets and safety features. To find out more about what is required for an HMO property visit the government’s website or contact your local council.

Take time with your Tenancy Agreements 

Even though all students are different there are some issues that are more common than others which is why it’s important that you protect yourself against them with your Tenancy Agreements. For example, as most student houses have a number of people living together there is a good chance that disagreements will happen and one of your students will choose to move out. In order to make sure you don’t lose out if this happens you need to make it clear in your Tenancy Agreement that you expect payment for the whole term of the tenancy regardless if one of your tenants moves out. Your Tenancy Agreements should also contain information about missed rent payments and damages caused to the property.

Just Landlords work with a wide range of landlords and provide a range of landlord insurance policies that can protect student landlords.