Fe
stival
time
can
bring
extra
incom
e
from
your
flat,
finds
Joan
McF
adden
SPRING
THE
PULSE
l
71
Fringe
benefits
of
renting
out
EDINBURGH
HAS
A
wonderful
traditional
image
of
being
a
place
of
peaceful
decorum,
apart
from
when
the
festival
rolls
round
and
ex
citement
and
ex
cess
tak
e
over
.
It8217s
some-
thing
of
a
myth
that
countless
Edinbur
gh
fam-
ilies
decamp
during
the
festival,
renting
out
their
property
and
making
megabucks
on
an
annual
basis.
Frances
Bigwood
has
rented
out
her
one-
bedroom
flat
at
To
llcross
over
the
festival
peri-
od
for
the
last
two
years,
and
while
she
laughs
at
the
idea
of
making
a
mint,
clearly
feels
it8217s
worth
her
while.
8220I
used
to
live
in
the
flat
and
now
I
rent
it
out
throughout
the
year
as
a
good
investment,8221
she
ex
plains.
8220I
have
been
lucky
that
for
the
last
two
years
the
flat
has
been
vacant
over
the
festival,
so
I8217ve
rented
it
out
for
Au
gust.
8220The
first
time
I
did
it
was
through
an
agency
called
A
Flat
In
To
wn
and
it
was
so
suc-
cessful
that
I8217ve
stayed
with
them
and
had
the
same
comedian
taking
the
let
both
times.8221
Bigwood
says
a
mis-
tak
e
made
by
landlords
is
to
assume
they
don8217t
need
to
put
in
much
effort,
but
the
reality
comes
down
to
being
careful
with
the
details.
Fe
stival
time
can
bring
extra
incom
e
from
your
flat,
finds
Joan
McF
adden
PROPER
TY
SHOW
ME
THE
MONEY
Pe
rf
ormers
at
the
Edinburgh
Fe
stival
will
pay
top
dollar
to
stay
in
the
centre
of
town
8220Obviously
it
has
to
be
immaculate,8221
she
says.
8220However
,
while
the
rest
of
the
time
my
tenants
will
or
ganise
their
own
TV
licence
and
utility
bills,
for
that
month
everything
has
to
go
back
into
my
name
and
that
can
be
com-
plicated.
I
know
there
are
tales
of
people
mak-
ing
a
fortune
cash-in-hand
but
I
would
suggest
getting
a
good
agency
to
tak
e
over
the
letting
for
you
and
you8217ll
still
mak
e
a
healthy
profit.8221
Katrina
Wa
lk
er
,
co-director
of
A
Flat
in
To
wn,
says
that
Au
gust
is
her
busiest
time
of
year
.
8220That8217s
what
we8217re
here
for
,8221
she
says.
8220W
e
tak
e
the
heat
out
of
it
for
landlord
and
ten-
ant
alik
e,
whether
that
means
sorting
prob-
lems
in
the
middle
of
the
night
or
making
sure
ke
ys
are
handed
out
and
returned.
We
find
most
of
the
property
is
rented
by
young
pro-
fessionals
to
people
working
at
the
festival
for
the
full
four
weeks.
Fa
mily
homes
tend
to
be
a
bit
further
out
and
full
of
sentimental
objects,
so
they8217re
not
ideal.
However
,
we8217re
happy
to
talk
to
anyone
interested
in
letting
out
their
property
and
giving
them
the
benefit
of
our
ex
perience.
8220
Log
on
to
the
web-
site
at
www
.aflatin
town.com
for
more
information.
How
to
be
landlord
of
your
manor
9632
Te
nants
will
appreciate
a
freshly
decorat
ed
propert
y
and
will
be
more
inclined
to
ke
ep
it
that
way
.
9632
Have
the
property
professionall
y
cleaned
at
the
start
of
the
let
and
put
a
clause
in
the
lease
ensuring
tenants
return
the
property
in
the
same
condition,
at
their
expense,
at
the
end
of
the
tenancy
.
9632
Check
tenants8217
references
8211
employment,
bank,
previous
landlord
and
charact
er
.
9632
Have
a
good
knowledge
of
the
extensive
safety
and
legal
requirements
of
letting
your
home.
A
good
letting
agent
will
be
happy
to
explain
these
to
you.
9632
Re
gister
as
a
landlord
with
your
local
authority
.
Michael
Steyn,
of
Steyn
Lettings,
on
renting
your
property
painlessly
and
successfully
8220I
would
suggest
getting
a
letting
agency
to
take
over
.
Yo
u8217ll
still
make
a
profit8221
P68-75_Pulse_Feb_
12/2/08
11:01
pm
Page
71
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