Listing your house for rent: how to protect yourself from unpleasant surprises?

It is increasingly common for owners to take the initiative of renting out their own home to supplement their income. Whether it is a secondary residence or the main residence left vacant during the holidays, some precautions are necessary to avoid unpleasant surprises when retrieving the property. If you are considering this, read our 6 tips carefully to protect your interests and peace of mind.

Be clear about the general characteristics of your property

When writing your advertisement, think like a tourist and provide all useful information about the property and its surroundings. Location is important to give the tenant a reliable reference point: they may not know the region or town, so do not hesitate to mention in the advertisement the cultural attractions and leisure activities available nearby, the proximity to the sea or mountains, etc.

Beyond the address, you can also provide a list of all local amenities, from bakeries to good restaurants, as well as supermarkets.

Regarding the property itself, be precise about the number of rooms and their purpose. The number of seats in the living room and at the large dining table can also avoid disappointments. The outdoor space, if there is one, as well as its size and composition, can complete your description.

The idea here is to turn images into words, so that the potential tenant is certain to understand the photos accompanying your advertisement. Leave no room for imagination, which could become a source of complaint!

List the equipment present precisely

To keep tenants happy, do not let them suffer from a lack of equipment that is important to them. Therefore, establish a complete list of equipment present in the accommodation, which they can supplement with their own belongings if needed.

In particular, indicate which household appliances are present and accessible, from cooking essentials to ironing equipment. Specify whether you provide bed linen as well as bath towels.

For comfort, indicate the presence of a walk-in shower, a bath, wellness facilities and, of course, a swimming pool. Potential children’s play equipment (swing, board games, etc.), particular multimedia equipment or the presence of fibre internet should also be mentioned.

Depersonalise the accommodation

This may seem obvious, but it is useful to specify that if you are renting out your main residence, no valuables should remain there. Cash and jewellery in particular should be taken away or stored elsewhere, as in the event of theft, you would need to prove their presence on the premises and their disappearance during the rental period. Prevention is the best strategy here.

The advice also applies to overly personal items, which may not match the incoming tenant’s decorative tastes. Family photos, ornaments of a distinctive taste and other symbols of your life should not be present in every room; they would embarrass the tenant and make them feel uncomfortable.

Finally, you will need to make space in the wardrobes for the tenants’ belongings, in each allocated bedroom. Nothing prevents you, if necessary, from keeping one bedroom locked, which would contain all your belongings and would not be part of the rental. Forcing this door would constitute breaking and entering, and a theft complaint could be defended before the authorities.

The general rule is to leave in the accommodation only what serves everyone. The essentials for cooking, sleeping, washing, as well as recreational equipment. Everything else is your concern only and would inconvenience the tenant.

Check that your insurance covers occasional rental

While most home insurance policies cover the presence of any third party in your property, it is far less certain that an occasional tenant is covered by your multi-risk policy. And some foreign tourists may not have liability insurance, so be sure to inform your insurance company of this situation.

A one-off guarantee for the duration of the stay, or permanent if you regularly rent out nights throughout the year, is the best solution. Contact your insurer to find out the procedures and associated costs.

Prevent potential damage and abuse

A check-in and check-out inventory will ensure that you find your property and everything it contains in the same condition as at the start. This document also has the advantage of encouraging tenants to take care of your belongings, for fear of applicable sanctions.

On this subject, you have the right to request a security deposit, from which you can deduct the cost of repairs and replacement of items damaged during the stay.

Also be careful about the use of your subscriptions: the video on demand from your box or your fixed telephone package could result in a bill you do not expect! As a precaution, limit phone use via your operator, so that you only keep unlimited actions. For VOD, you can simply prevent its use with a protection code.

Beware of the law!

It allows you to rent your main residence to a third party, up to 120 days per year. Beyond this, you must change the use of the property. Furthermore, contact your local council to ensure that renting is permitted: in some areas, authorisation is required. A number is then assigned to the property, which must appear on all advertisements and communications.

An oversight can be costly: up to €5,000 in the absence of a registration number on the advertisement, or even €10,000 if the 120-day limit is exceeded.

Note also that if you are a tenant, you can also sublet the property. You will then need written authorisation from the owner, under penalty of having your lease terminated and having to repay the amounts received.

Handing over the keys to your house to strangers is not advisable for people who are naturally anxious. For others, it is an excellent way to earn some extra money to fund their own holidays, which also allows for informal security of the house. It is therefore entirely beneficial, provided the property is returned in the expected condition. Do not forget to declare the amounts received to the tax services, in the category of industrial and commercial profits if it is a furnished property (empty properties fall under property income). You are now ready to make the most of your holiday!