At the moment I have a lodger in my 2 bedroom flat, but she is moving out soon and I want to let the flat fully. It is the only property I own, and it is not a buy to let mortgage. My mortgage providers have told me they are happy for me to do this, as long as I keep them informed.

Could anyone please tell me anything more about what I need to do in order to let the flat? I want to make sure I do it properly and ensure the correct fire safety equipment is there etc. Does anyone know about self-closing fire doors? The flat is arranged so that all the rooms open off a hallway, the kitchen and living areas are seperate rooms. When I bought the flat, the door closers had been removed, but do I need to re-instate them? (the flat is on the 3rd floor)

At the moment I have a basic contract for a lodger, does anyone know of a good place to get a proper contract for tenants? Is there anything else I should be doing, other than letting the council know and changing all the bills over to the new tenants names?

If anyone knows of any good websites I might find useful, please let me know!

Thankyou!

Visit www.landlordzone.co.uk there are lots of agreements and more importantly information there.

Visit www.landlordzone.co.uk there are lots of agreements and more importantly information there.

Thanks musey, I will have a look. :thumbsup:

you need a shorthold tenancy agreement available from law stationers, either furnished or unfurnished. if youre letting furnished the furniture has to conform to fire safety regs, (think its 1988 regs), youll need buildings / landlords insurance , your mortgage provider may insist you switch to a different mortgage at commercial rate- check this, youll need a gas safety check cert from a corgi registered plumber/ engineer for each gas appliance- this is needed annually. also new laws just come in about holding bonds/deposits that you might want to check out.
letting agencies can arrange all this for you but will charge about 10 % per month and usually roughly the first months rent for setting it all up/ finding tenant/ checking references etc.
dont be put off doing it yourself- its straightforward