Has anyone with a self-contained unit inside their house or next door had problems with guests wanting access to whole property?

1

We are in the early stages of looking for a new house. We will focus on places that have MIL apartments, separate entrance basement apartments or little guest cottages, so we could host there.

If you have a similar set-up, are there ever issues with guests expecting access to the main house to use something that may not exist in the guest unit, like bigger kitchen, tub,washer/dryer?

I would only mention amenities that are available in the guest unit when listing, but we all know there are people who like to push boundaries and extract the maximum value for money.

2

Never. Sometimes they do ask about laundry but it’s already in my listing that laundry is not guest accessible and give them directions to the nearest launderette. They like the privacy of my place and never come upstairs expecting more.

3

Hi,

We have a separate suite in our basement plus we share our laundry as it is on the same level. We explicitly state there is a small bistro table on the patio for their use, actually provided for smokers so they have a place outside not far from the suite. But, we have had guests who assume they have full access to our complete patio including dining table and firepit area. We do not allow use of our firepit for obvious reasons. We state that we “respect the privacy of our guests” which of course applies to us but some people just don’t “get it”.

5

I think that as long as its not called a “self contained” unit or apartment if it doesn’t have separate facilities to cook and is connected to your place then people wouldn’t challenge it. A unit is separate vs a flat or suite being attached. An apartment is completely livable with private or shared facilities in their entirety, laundry, bathroom, kitchen, etc… A suite, flat, room, etc… are spaces that have adjoining walls, even if they are separate entrances. I pride myself on making sure that my descriptions are clear and not misleading to potential stayers and that saves the arguments.

6

Hey Angel,

Welcome! Please note that this topic is very old. You “should” see a warning message about this, before “necro’ing” any posts over 6 months old.

Lots of good reading in here.