“Landlords!  Is your Tenant Subletting?”

My Tenant is Subletting

Generally, as a Landlord, your aim is to maximise your return on investment (ROI) with minimal hands-on involvement.  You seek security and a predictable income from well-referenced and reliable Tenants.  There comes a moment, however, when a lack of checks fail to uncover that a tenant is subletting.

Running a guest house is a different matter.  Yet some Tenants are using temporary accommodation platforms, such as Airbnb, to profit from a property at their Landlord’s expense.  This surreptitious sub-letting may not be illegal, but it is almost certainly in breach of a good tenancy agreement designed to prevent such activities.

We heard of one example where over 300 people had stayed under a year, mostly for one to three nights, in a tenanted London flat.  The Landlord was blissfully unaware and the official Tenant, who had not spent one night in the flat, had pocketed a significant profit from the Landlord’s investment.

Are you absolutely sure as to how your property is being used?  Indeed, some may not even care, as long as the rent regularly rolls in on time.  However, as responsible letting and managing agents, we go to great lengths to ensure that our Clients’ investments do not become a ‘guest house’.  We know of worse (and have heard of examples of temporary brothels being created in this way).

Subletting ‘Costs’ for Landlord

Sub-letting substantially increases wear and tear on the property.  It almost certainly breaches mortgage conditions, as well as potentially invalidating building/contents/third party liability insurance.  Additionally, if a temporary “guest” decided to take up residence, it would be extremely difficult to evict them – the “Guest Tenant” does not have ANY contractual agreement with the Landlord.

We enjoy a great relationship with both our Landlords and Tenants.  In our role as our Landlord Clients’ “investment manager”, we are very protective of the properties in our care.  As a result, we keep a close eye on how they are being used.  It’s what good tenancy and property management is all about!

Would you like to talk to us about your property and tenancy management?  Call 01273 735237 or email enquiries@callaways.co.uk