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I’ve lived in so many rented houses over the years before I bought my current house that I’m not even sure I can count them. I’ve lived in them as a child, and then with children of my own, and I’ve always been surprised at the mixed reaction I’ve had to renting as a family. I’ve even seen my fair share of rental ads saying things like ‘no pets, no children’, which seems such a shame – landlords are missing out on what I think is actually a very valuable market.
Plus, at the end of the day you’re always going to have things like insurance to protect you, should any accidents happen. Pop and compare landlord insurance now to see which deal is the best for you.
Just in case you’re a landlord who is not sure whether or not to allow children in your rented property, here are a few reasons why I think it actually makes a lot of sense to rent your house to a family.
Families are good at responsibility
If you’re a parent then in my opinion you already have a base level of responsibility going on that single people or childless couples might yet to have experienced. You’re used to putting other people first and taking other people into consideration, and that includes your landlord. This applies to financial responsibility too – being able to pay the rent and keep a roof over your kids’ head is going to be a top priority.
We keep a house nice
Because we’re stuck at home a lot, most parents want their home to be somewhere they can really enjoy spending time, and that means keeping it nice. I personally find it incredibly difficult to relax in a messy home, and so even if it looks like a bomb has gone off during the day, it’s not normally more than a ten minute tidy up away from looking calm and peaceful. I’ve done decorating in rented houses too, and while my paint colors may not always be to everyone’s tastes I’ve always been happy to repaint at the end of a tenancy.
Any parent with small children knows their way around a bottle of stain remover for sure.
Parents are at home more
One worry for landlords I’m sure is having their house left empty a lot, and I can say from experience that families are a safe bet for this one. We’re not out every evening socialising with interesting friends or jetting off on foreign holidays with all of our disposable income. Most likely we’re at home every night falling asleep in front of Netflix and occasionally we might manage four nights in a caravan in Cornwall.
If you’re looking for tenants then who will be at home a lot, looking after your house, families are the way to go.
I’m a nice person
Okay, so this one might be a little specific, but I’ve been a single parent on and off for most of my life and have managed to rent dozens of houses without spilling red wine on the carpet, getting crayon on the walls, or pulling any light fittings down from the ceiling. I care about the homes I live in and I’m sure most families feel the same.
For any landlords out there then, not sure about whether families make good tenants, I say give us a shot!