Renting out your spare room doesn’t need to be complicated or stressful. By having the right things in place ahead of time, renting out your spare room can be a really rewarding experience. 
 

We’ve been placing guests in host homes across Ireland since 2014, and in this blog post, we want to share with you the 5 key things that, in our experience, make renting out your room less stressful.
 

1. The Room

Beyond having a spare room, it’s important that you prepare the room so it’s ready for your guest to use. 
 

As your guest will be staying for a minimum of one month, they will need to have a proper bed that will provide them with a good nights sleep. Size wise, the bed can be a single or double, whichever suits the room best.

When it comes to choosing a bed for a smaller room, a multiuse bed such as a sofa bed or convertible bed can be a tempting option. This type of bed can serve as a comfortable seating area during the day, freeing up more space in the room. However, it's important to keep in mind that not all multiuse beds are created equal. It's always a good idea to check with the shop or manufacturer to ensure that the bed you are considering is suitable for for extended periods of use. 
 

It’s also important that the bed is ready to use on the first night your guest arrives. We advise our Hosts to provide 2 sets of linen, a duvet, and two pillows. Having this prepared helps your guest to settle in quicker.
 

After the bed, it’s the little details that will really matter. Putting in a reading lamp and a bedside table can be a low-cost way to add a lot of value and character to the room. This will make all the difference in helping your guest to feel at home, more comfortable and welcome. 
 

By making this effort for your guest you’re not only helping them settle in better but your room will also be more attractive when you are taking photos to advertise it too. 
 

We’d also recommend that you keep the room you are renting out as clutter-free as possible - your guest will have personal belongings that they will want to unpack. Make sure they have the space to do that. 

 

2. WiFi

While some guests may already have unlimited data on their phone and be less sensitive to needing your home to have WiFi, for other guests, it can be an important feature. 
We recommend having WiFi available for those who might need it as an added advantage to renting your room. 
 

If you don’t already have it installed you could check with your neighbors or local community groups for the best service providers in your area. Then, you’ll need to have the network details and password to hand so your guest can easily access the internet at your home.

3. House Rules & Other Documents

Living with someone new in your home has the potential to lead to misunderstandings or miscommunications. We’ve worked with thousands of hosts over the years and in our experience, a good clear set of house rules will avoid all of that. 
 

Creating some reasonable house rules allows both you and your guest to understand what is acceptable and what is not and enables you to create a more harmonious living arrangement as a result. If you’d like more tips on how to rent out your room and still feel at home, you can read this blog post here. 
 

We’ve also found that creating some other documents for our hosts has helped them simplify the renting process. We provide our hosts with a Deposit Form and a Rent Schedule Form to help them keep track of payments and avoid any potential missed rent payments. 

 

4. A Secure Way To Advertise Your Room

Now that your room is ready, and you are all set up with your rules and documents, you need a guest! This is a hugely important part of the process in making sure your rental venture goes smoothly. 
 

Getting the right guest to stay in your home is down to advertising in the right way and making sure a vetting process is in place. 
 

You’ll want to take some photos of the room for rent, and the bathroom the guest will use (shared or private) and any other common areas (such as the kitchen). Then it’s important to create a detailed description of the room you are renting out and the location too, so that your potential guest gets a good understanding of what is on offer. 
 

Finally, you’ll need to decide on a price for the room you are renting out. You can read about best pricing practices in our other blog post here.
 

5. A Warm Welcome

First impressions matter, so it’s important to make your guest feel welcome when they arrive. 
 

This doesn’t mean that you have to throw them a welcome to the neighborhood party, but just be there to greet them, show them around and make them feel like they are welcome. 
 

You may be renting your room out to earn extra money, but in our experience, it can often end up being so much more than that. We have hosts that have created real friendships with their guests and enjoyed having them stay with them so much that they are still in contact to this day. You can read about some of these experiences here.
 

It’s all about getting off on the right foot, and that takes preparation. 

By focusing on these 5 things mentioned above, you will be prepared to rent out your room, welcome your guest and create an ideal living arrangement for everyone involved. 
 

If you’d like support with renting out your room from start to finish, we are more than happy to help. 
 

Our services to our Hosts are free. We can help you create a detailed listing of your room to attract the right guests, we’ll advertise your room for you, and we’ll vet the guests that apply to book your room too. 
 

We will provide you with a set of house rules, as well as a deposit form and rent schedule document. We will be there with you every step of the way to support you in preparing for your guest, finding the right guest to rent to, and we will continue to offer our support until the day your guest checks out. 
 

You can apply to become a host, anywhere in Ireland, today by clicking the button below and filling in this short application.