Renting out our house
I’m wondering if anyone has any insight about renting out a house. We have a 3 bedroom single family in Windsor Terrace. Renovated, nicely furnished. We are thinking about going overseas for 2 years and I’m pondering renting it out vs selling. Anyone ever rent or rent out a house? What’s the best way to…
I’m wondering if anyone has any insight about renting out a house. We have a 3 bedroom single family in Windsor Terrace. Renovated, nicely furnished.
We are thinking about going overseas for 2 years and I’m pondering renting it out vs selling.
Anyone ever rent or rent out a house? What’s the best way to do it? What about upkeep etc? Furnishings?
Any thoughts or comments on your own experience would be helpful.
Thanks!
It would be a good idea to take lots of pictures of the interior and a few of the exterior. Just in case you get someone who damages your property. The photos are excellent proof of the condition of the unit before you rented it. Good luck.
Thank you all for your help!
You will want to find a realtor to manage the property for you in your absence. Tenants will need someone on the spot to attend to any repairs in a timely manner. If you are going to let furnished, make sure all your personal papers, photos etc. are safely stored offsite. Things like deeds, mortgage docs, wills, insurance policies belong in a safe deposit box at a bank. You might find a realtor who specializes in letting furnished places to people in the US temporarily, like some UN workers or visiting professors.
Be very, very careful about renting to diplomats (people in the US on A visas) because they usually have diplomatic immunity and can’t be sued. Most landlords won’t consider them, but if they’re from somewhere like Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the UK, the Netherlands, Germany, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland their government will likely make them pay what they owe. A good rule of thumb is that if the embassy pays all of its parking violations on time, they’re a good bet as a tenant. If the embassy doesn’t pay its parking violations (think Brazil, and most developing nations) do not consider renting to one of their employees.
No one can answer this for you – you have to figure out what you are willing to risk. If you can’t tolerate the idea of having some of your furniture stained (fabric and/or wood), your rugs pissed on by pets (even if forbidden by you), etc., then by all means, put your furniture in storage and rent it empty.
I’d never leave my current furnishings to sublettors. However, there was time in grad school in my younger days when I did sublet furnished to another student – because I had furniture that was cheap and easily replaceable that I was not at all attached to. My expensive wood furniture and antiques, not the same feeling at all. So it likely depends on what you have, and how attached to it you are. And, if you have cheap or middle of the road stuff that is easily replaceable, it doesn’t pay to be too attached to it – that makes for craziness. Storage is not cheap.
You may want to store some pieces you care about, and leave the rest. I think furnished places rent easier if the furnishings are sparse (think of place staged to sell) than if they are overflowing with your stuff. Also, remove all your personal stuff – books, papers, clothing, all clutter – you’ll get the best rent that way.
You could have a good experience, as the poster above notes. But it is a risk – you never know what you’ll get.
There is a great website called sabbaticalhomes.com where academic seekers and providers of homes can connect. Its very reasonably priced to list a home and hopefully dealing with academics will take some of the angst out of the process. Good luck!
Well — my mother once rented out her furnished house in California to a visiting professor and his family from Japan. They left the place in better condition than when they arrived. My mother was thrilled.