Putting up the rent

Having someone else living in the house will inevitably result in some increase in your utility bills – as (assuming your lodger’s room was unoccupied before) there will be extra heating and electricity being used.  Hopefully, you should have taken this into account when setting your rent.

However, if your utility bills have gone up dramatically, for example, if your lodger has the heat on full all day, then if your rent is an inclusive one, you will need to consider increasing the rent fairly soon. There is not much point in having a lodger if he is costing you money.

If your lodger is unhappy about the rent increase, show him the bills before and after he moved in to prove your point.

Note however that if you have signed up for a specific period with an all-inclusive rent, you will not normally be able to increase the rent until the initial period has come to an end.

With a long term lodger, it should be understood that you will increase the rent periodically in line with the cost of living, and most people will accept this.

However, if your lodger refuses to pay the higher rent, then (assuming the increase is a reasonable one) you should consider asking him to leave so you can find someone else.  Either someone who is prepared to pay a proper rent, or someone who won’t run up your bills so much.

Procedure

As regards the procedure for putting up the rent, have a look at your lodger agreement first to see if this says anything about it. 

If it is silent (and most will be), then talk to your lodger and agree on a new rent with them.  Then confirm this in writing, making sure you keep a copy of your letter.

If you do not want to discuss it with your lodger or if he is unwilling to talk about it, just give him a letter, with a copy,  explaining about the rent increase, and ask him to sign and date one copy and return it to you, to confirm his agreement.

Alternatively, you can ask your lodger to sign a new lodger agreement, giving the new rent, for a new fixed period.