The Insider: Planning for lodgers

Imagine a lovely B&B room and steal its tricks

If you've been touched by the financial gloom (and which of us hasn't?), letting – or, if permitted, sub-letting – a room in your home can be an ace income-booster. But if you fear a new experience that might conjure up a studenty house-sharing vibe, consider revamping your space thoughtfully before you rent out...

Best-laid plans To set the domestic tone for a lodger rather than a housemate may require some reconfiguration: while it is your home, you also want your lodger to feel at home

Separate thrives An eat-in kitchen and separate living-room are a bonus – but could you make each space more of a self-contained hang-out, adding a comfy chair and a TV to a kitchen, or a table in the living-room?

Size matters Don't have that luxury? Could you give the biggest bedroom to your lodger, adding a TV, armchair – and even a tiny kitchen if you are going for short-term lodgers?

Appliance of science Spacesavers.co.uk does kitchens in cupboards; find flip-down TVs on Amazon.

Shoot for the top To shout "lodger" rather than "house-share" in your advertising photos, imagine a lovely B&B room and steal its tricks: think crisp white sheets and tasteful things on the walls (but not too many).

Cache deposit Install bedroom storage: antique hanging racks for bulky coats and towels, high shelving, somewhere for suitcases, drawers under the bed, and a chest to throw clothes in and across.

Clean sweep Split the cost of a cleaner for communal areas. You will notice more dirt than they will. Fact.

Find Kate's blog on affordable interiors at yourhomeislovely.com