Rent or Sell, what to do??????

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Brains

Legendary Member
Location
Greenwich
Long story short.

Mrs Smoo inherited her Grandparents house recently, although it has to go through probate etc so it's not available to do anything with just yet AFAIK.

Question is should we rent it, (2 bed terrace, not in a great area TBH), or just sell it? SWMBO has always said she just wants to sell it, but I've always lent more towards renting it out, but recently she has shown a little interest in the renting option.

Looking for anyone whose been through the same. I know the pitfalls of renting, but it would be given to an agent and we'd have nowt to do with it basically, got no interest in being a private landlord.

T.I.A.

You have answered your own question.

If you have no (long term) interest in being a landlord, then don't be one.
As a Landlord you will be working for your money, and you will also have a sizeable chunk of money tied up in the property.

If the house is now empty and sorting out probate can take quite a long time (over two years in each of the the cases of my grandmother, stepfather and sister) then it would probably make sense to clear the house as soon as possible, put everything in storage, redecorate and rent it out.

Houses need to be lived in.
If they are left unoccupied for any length of time (4-6 weeks) then you start to get damp issues, security issues, and so on.

Once probate and everything is sorted, then when the current tenant decides to move on (most only stay around 3 years) you then sell the house and invest the money with a wealth fund.

I use an Agent to find my tenants, but once they are in, I do my own management, as I have found that ongoing management by an Agent simply costs money for very little benefit, if there is a major issue, all the Agent does is call you.

Being a Landlord can make you 10-15% a year, but it comes with a fair bit of risk, a lot of work and some eye-watering costs.
The same money could be put with a wealth fund and will make you 5% a year, and all you have to do is sit back and watch it come into the bank account.
 

postman

Legendary Member
Location
,Leeds
FFS SELL SELL SELL.I know telly progs are sheet,but just look at some of them that deal with tenants.Thousands and thousands of pounds in unpaid rent,costing even more in legal fees,and they always seem to win.Not in a great area tells all you want to know.Get shut sell it.
 

ColinJ

Puzzle game procrastinator!
My sisters and I ended up with a 'tenant from hell' in our late mother's house. Missed rent payments, damage to the property, threats etc... It took a long time to get him out. He didn't take all of his stuff with him when he was eventually evicted. We had the locks changed and put a notice in the window to say that he should phone my sister and she would pop round to let him in to pick the rest of his stuff up. He didn't bother making the call, he just went round the back and smashed a window to get in...

SELL!!!
 
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gbb

Legendary Member
Location
Peterborough
How much do you need the aggro if It all goes pear shaped.
I knew one guy who had 3 houses I think...eventually sold up, just too much aggravation when and if you get non payers.
Agents ? How do you trust them ? Friend rented her house out and she came to the conclusion the agents weren't doing anything bar taking the money and actively prevented her from getting involved in some issue or other...when she wanted to.
Personally, I'd sell. Lifes too short to bring potential problems on yourself you don't need to.
 

Brains

Legendary Member
Location
Greenwich
My sisters and I ended up with a 'tenant from hell' in our late mother's house. Missed rent payments, damage to the property, threats etc... It took a long time to get him out. He didn't take all of his stuff with him when he was eventually evicted. We had the locks changed and put a notice in the window to say that he should phone my sister and she would pop round to let him in to pick the rest of his stuff up. He didn't bother making the call, he just when round the back and smashed a window to get in...

SELL!!!

A decent agent doing the checks will reduce the likelihood of this type of event.
Be ultra picky with who you let in.

Having said which, I use an Agent, who did the checks, and we still ended up in court as you cant prevent fraud.
 

screenman

Legendary Member
Blimey all this about bad tenants, I bet there are a lot of members on this forum who rent, are they all bad? Despite having had the chances i have never wanted to be a landlord, not because of the work etc. but more because it goes against the grain with me, it is in many area's the reason why prices are so high stopping others getting the chance to buy. I can still remember how hard paying council house rent and getting £5,000 deposit was with a wife and two kids to support back in 1980.
 

Proto

Legendary Member
Property price fall apocalypse is just around the corner. Sell as quickly as you can. Stick the money into a wealth fund as suggested.
 

Globalti

Legendary Member
You must be off your chump even to consider renting, sorry. Why tie up capital in a depreciating asset that will cost you money to maintain and manage? A tired old house in a bad area will not attract good tenants and you're almost guaranteed to get some scum who don't respect the place. Compared with selling and investing the cash with a good fund manager, a hassle-free, stress-free solution which gives you a nest egg for retirement or a rainy day.
 
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