Digs are back with the rent a room scheme!
Budget 2021 is looming – Tuesday 13th October 2020 to be precise. Will it banish the “Annus horribilis” that has been 2020 to date? I hate saying this, but I don’t think so. Covid19 has been a crushing year for everybody, both mentally and financially draining. Everybody, without exception, has been affected in one form or another. Currently the Government have reported a €10 billion deficit due to Covid19, this compares to a mere €625 million this time last year. I suspect we will be hit and hit hard.
Homeowners Rent a room scheme Ireland
But for the users of getdigs.ie what areas of the budget will impact us and how can we take advantage of them? Well getting the country back onto the road of recovery will be paramount in the Governments thinking.
Assisting businesses who have been severely hit by Covid19 will be top of the agenda.
Brexit and it’s impact on businesses and how Ireland will cope will be up there too.
Closer to home is where Homeowners have been impacted negatively by Covid19 and a lot of people are struggling to meet their monthly mortgage repayments. Banks have offered a Mortgage Repayment Break which will be coming to an end shortly and the monthly mortgage repayments will be increasing. This is heaping more distress on already struggling Homeowners. MABS (Money Advice & Budgeting Service) have seen a marked increase in inquires to their helplines. But wait I don’t want to come across as all doom and gloom.
Rent a Room Scheme
Currently the Rent a Room Scheme stands at €14,000 per annum Tax Free. What this means is that a Homeowner can rent out a room in their home on a Monday to Friday basis and earn up to €14,000 per annum Tax Free (that’s over €1,000 per month into your hand!). Inquiries to getdigs.ie have increased dramatically since the colleges have resumed. Former AirB&B hosts are now looking at Digs as a better option as they are now in more control. Having only one Lodger is a much better option as having numerous visitors during this pandemic and the tax free income is very welcome. AirB&B hosts are subject to tax whereas Homeowners renting out a room in their own home over a longer period of time only pay tax on the sum that exceeds €14,000 per annum. This makes it very worthwhile indeed and the majority of our Homeowners rent out their room on a ‘part of the week’ basis. This could be Monday to Friday, Sunday to Thursday or whatever suits both the Homeowner and the Lodger. The beauty being that the Homeowner has the house to themselves on weekends and the Lodger has a reduced rental cost. It really is a win-win situation all round.
But don’t take our word for it, check out the Citizens Advice website on the Rent a Room Scheme here.
The positive affect Get Digs has on Climate Change
Another area that will be potentially hit at Budget Time is Climate Change and it’s impact on Ireland. A carbon tax is likely which will mean your daily commute to and from work will cost more. Staying in a comfortable home, or Digs as they are better know as, with all the mod cons on a Monday to Friday basis is becoming very attractive to the long commuters and to students who can study more diligently in a comfortable space.
GetDigs.ie is a service that connects potential Lodgers with Homeowners that have a room to rent for the working week. Homeowners can have rental utopia, whereby they can rent out their room for the working week and then have the place to themselves for the weekend.
These are all worth thinking of. Should you have any queries just Contact Us.