Geoff had tried selling his house for two years with no luck, so he decided to try renting it out.

“It seems a bit strange, but it’s worked well” he said, “I’ve got a tenant in my house, and I’m renting a house in the area I want to live in. It’s worked out at roughly break even.”

Being a landlord entails certain responsibilities. “I have to keep the property maintained, and there are things like the insurance and annual gas safety certificate. In particular, I know the house is going to need a new boiler in a couple of years.”

Geoff started putting a bit extra away every month as a contingency fund.

“It was easy”, he said “I just filled in the form and the extra money comes straight out of my wages. I don’t even notice it’s gone”.

By the time his old boiler goes off the boil, Geoff reckons he’ll have enough saved to take the steam out of the expense – all without needing a loan.