AndrewC
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2 Posts
Good evening, We live in abroad and have a tenant in the UK who has just been advised that he has secured a university placement overseas starting next January, which could run for 9 months. He has asked us if he could sub-let his studio apartment because he would like to return there when his placement ends. I have checked his AST and it states that a tenant may sub-let their rented property with the landlord's agreement, 'which will not be unreasonably withheld'. I have looked online and found various articles about this scenario and it seems to me that while sub-letting seems to be commonplace, we would be losing control over our property as we will not be involved in selecting his replacement. He will have the responsibility of issuing an AST and, if the new tenant defaults, leaves, or has a problem, he will have to deal with the process. This isn't something he will be able to do easily seeing as he will be on the other side of the world and has no experience of managing a rental property. While we like this tenant and would like to help him avoid having to find a new rental upon his return, I am concerned that we could be leaving ourselves open to all kinds of issues. If he had asked if his best friend or a member of his family could move in, that could be considered, but it is very likely he will find another student, with no connection to him, to move in. I am also aware that sub-letting may not be permitted by buildings insurer. If we did agree to his sub-letting, we would ask our property manager to make arrangements to visit regularly. However, despite this, I feel uneasy about the proposal. Maybe I am being unnecessarily pessimistic about such a set-up. I would appreciate advice from an NRLA adviser or other landlords with experience of the sub-letting situation. Many thanks.
