Why not rent out your driveway?

With the economy in poor shape and many people finding money in severely short supply, a new company, Park Let, helps homeowners to rent out their driveway or garage to earn extra income and motorists benefit because they pay substantially

Make your house earn money by renting out your driveway

less than at more commercial car parks.

Park Let, has seen a massive increase in business during the recession as people look to maximise their income and cut costs. The process is extremely straightforward:

The property owner contacts Park Let with the details of their driveway, parking space or allocated parking bay. In fact the ‘property owner’ can be anything from a residential homeowner with a single driveway, to tenants who are able to sublet, owners and managing agents of apartment blocks, companies with surplus spaces and individuals or organisations with empty garages or lockups.

Park Let adds the details on to its site and contacts prospective tenants if the space is in an area with a waiting list. Interested parties then get in contact with Park Let to rent out a space. The motorist is able to go and view the parking space if they want to.

Your parking could be a lot cheaper for a motorist - and make money for you at the same time

A contract is drawn up, Park Let collects any deposits required for keys, fobs or security cards and the first month’s rent. A direct debit is also set up to collect subsequent payments. Park Let also takes a 15% commission for the marketing and administration time. The tenant is free to use the space 24 hours a day for either a five or seven day week, depending on the agreement.

Benefits

Landlords benefit from the extra income and in some cases people feel more secure having a car parked outside their house all day. Motorists benefit as they have a guaranteed space everyday, their car is less likely to get damaged and they will have saved themselves some money.

The UK league table lists the most lucrative areas in which to rent out a space. (London comes under a separate heading – see below).

Park Let is the largest parking space letting agent in the UK and has already arranged over 10,000 contracts and currently has 21,000 spaces available to let. Park Let operates in the monthly or season ticket market as it believes landlords prefer the longevity of these contracts and feel more comfortable with the same tenant coming and going each day.

Park Let calculates the rental price of a parking space in much the same way as a residential estate agent agrees the rental price of a property with a landlord. There is usually a maximum value for a space in a particular area or postcode and other factors can influence the price too, such as proximity to facilities or congestion zones.

Security is another important factor: spaces or bays with key-pad entry, electronic gates or even CCTV can demand a premium. Areas near busy town and city centres tend to be the most lucrative as do areas near busy railway stations, hospitals, schools and leisure attractions.

Park Let was the first company to introduce a free ‘parking space price guide tool’ earlier this year too. Go to http://www.parklet.co.uk/parking-rental-price-guide.aspx, type in your postcode and see how much your own drive would be worth.

© Stewart Andersen and Stewart Andersen’s Property Blog, 2009. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Stewart Andersen and Stewart Andersen’s Property Blog with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.