10 best ways to find HMO tenants

Im located in Southend on Sea. I have other HMO's with no trouble letting. But i fear this property is a little bit out of the town centre so i think that's putting them off. But saying that we have just invested 60k doing the place up, its like a 5* hotel!!
also one of the rooms is a small single room which i have found from past experience are harder to budge. I only accept working tenants (no dss)

Maybe rent? I've found that although my places are basic - not had an update since we started - 12 years ago, just painting and repairs, the tenants are willing to put up with this for proximity to transport. I have one that is on the 5* list (the inspector for the license said it was the best he'd seen) and being zone 3 (a high 'professional' grade of tenant as well - i.e. earn more) I find them harder to let, they go, but by no means as easily as the one opposite the tube in Zone 2. The rents are pretty much the same as well.

Single rooms are very hard work - try a fold up bed, there are some great ones out now and a very worthwhile investment.

Hi John,

thanks for posting your query - it's an interesting one and good to see all the feedback and recommendations. If you're using SpareRoom I'd say don't give up on it as a channel, merely look at how you're using it - there are many factors that can affect the responses you get, which don't necessarily reflect how the channel works in general. SpareRoom connects you with millions of potential tenants, in a safe and secure environment, which cannot be said of Gumtree unfortunately.

Have a good look at your ad and those of others in your area - how does yours come across? Does it seem good value for money? Have you got good quality photos? Are you transparent about the letting process and any fees a tenant might have to pay? Are you able to say a little about who else lives there, and who people might expect to be sharing with? What are the experiences of your current tenants?

Have you got a free ad on SpareRoom or have you upgraded? Upgrading allows easy contact by everyone without waiting, which opens your ad up to a much bigger audience and in general upgraded advertisers rent their rooms in half the time. There are also additional options like featured ads that allow advertisers to showcase their ad to get more visibility, whilst you stay in control of how much you spend. If you'd like more advice on how to position your ad to best advantage and take advantage of all the tools SpareRoom can put at your disposal. ** content moderated - we do not allow members to post email addresses or phone numbers in comment feeds, not even sponsors, sorry! Please see >>> http://www.property118.com/advertising/65073/**

I use Spareroom and usually get good results: the quality of applicants is young graduate-level with decent jobs.

I too have given up on Gumtree: too many time-wasters and people who seem incapable of reading the wording of the advert. However if I was struggling with Spareroom I would try Gumtree as well - it is better-known amongst certain groups such as immigrants from eastern Europe who are a natural constituency for HMOs.

I tried using a website that had access to Rightmove, and I have to say the quality of tenant was hopeless/clueless. They seemed incapable of understanding the concept of a houseshare and kept assuming the room price was for a whole one- or two-bedroom flat. I therefore leave Rightmove to the letting agencies.

I have tried Accommodationforstudents but my houses are just a little bit too far from campus to attract students. I have had a couple of postgraduates and they make excellent HMO tenants, mixing well with my graduate professionals. Undergraduates are more tribal and tend to stick together, plus they have the option of halls provided by the university and longstanding "student houses".

Other methods I've used are:
- word of mouth and inviting my existing tenants to ask around their friends and acquaintances. They quite enjoyed doing this as it gave them some quality control over who was moving in, but it's not a reliable method.
- advertisments at the local university's accommodation office, the local hospital's staff notice board, and the bulletin board of a major local employer. However my properties are not in the prime University/hospital area and are better suited to young working people, so Spareroom remains the best option for general advertising.

Reply to the comment left by "Robert Mellors" at "06/06/2014 - 11:38":

It was my understanding that unless additional services are included eg a B & B type of service, an AST still had to be used. Whether you issue a licence for document purposes, if it were challenged in court they would rule that the landlord still had to comply with the terms of an AST, because this is effectively what the agreement is.
Can anyone confirm please?

I am part renting my current rented property to another couple and was wondering if landlords are open to renting to someone who would like to use the property for HMO

If so I would like to rent one property as demand for my spare room has been consistent on sparerooms

I live in southwest london

Thank you very much for any advice you can give

Reply to the comment left by "Tilly Mint" at "07/06/2014 - 08:22":

Hi Tilly

Yes you are correct, that some services may need to be offered (though not necessarily like a B&B), but I have structured my HMO business in such a way as to ensure that my occupancies are licence agreements, in both form and content, so that if they were ever challenged then the courts would also come to that conclusion.

My agreements have been shown to the Citizens Advice Bureau, to Shelter, and to the Council's Private Rented Housing Officers, by residents at various points in time, and all of these have concluded that they are valid licences, and would not be considered as tenancies simply purporting to be licences.

As the likes of Shelter are extremely keen to challenge "sham" licences, then their acceptance of my agreements as true licence agreements lead me to believe that this would also be the view of the courts. I have written in more detail on a different thread on this website that was specifically about licence agreements.

Robert have you got a link to that thread i would like to read it, unless you are providing a daily maid service i cant see how you can be so certain your licence is 'court proof'

i also use a licence agreement, we provide a bi weekly cleaning service where the maid is allowed under the TC's to enter there room to clean and inspect therefore i would argue there rooms are not 'exclusive possession' but if challenged in a court i would expect this to be thrown out! But my view is most tenants except the agreements as licenses and wouldn't challenge them

Reply to the comment left by "john kelly" at "07/06/2014 - 15:32":

Hi John

The link is:

http://www.property118.com/does-anyone-else-use-licence-agreements/61691/#comments

If cleaning is all you provide then yes you may be on shaky ground if challenged, but you may be providing more services than you realise and if you itemise these out and list them in your licence agreement (and perhaps add a few extra) then you may be able to overcome the legal presumption of a tenancy.

When I say you may already be providing more services than you realise, think about what the maid actually does, e.g. as well as cleaning and checking the room, is she checking on the welfare of the resident, befriending the resident, offering advice or support, checking fire alarms, receiving reports of repairs needed or nuisance from other residents, etc, etc. Does this service help to prevent bullying or abuse of vulnerable residents (financial, sexual, physical, emotional). Think about what other services you could provide cost effectively that would make it more likely to be a licence rather than a tenancy.

Brilliant Robert, i will read your post with great interest

Thanks for the extra services, very interesting, but i'm intrigued what angle of law does this conclusively prove the residence is not 'exclusive possession'?