Q I bought my flat a little over a year ago, and have recently agreed to take a sabbatical with my partner. We’re planning to be out of the UK for up to six months from the end of this year-middle of next. Ideally, I’d like to rent my flat out while we’re away to cover costs of mortgage, bills etc.

I understand that I will need to talk to my mortgage provider, but I’m not sure what the options might be. I understand that if I were to rent the flat out permanently I’d need to change to a buy-to-let mortgage, but will I be expected to do that for just six months?

KC

A You do indeed need to talk to your mortgage provider but before you do, it might be an idea to ask an estate agent how much in rent you could expect to get for your flat.

If it’s more than enough to cover your monthly mortgage payments, this might help persuade your lender to give you its “consent to let”. This means that you would be allowed to let your flat but wouldn’t be made to switch to a buy-to-let mortgage and so could carry on with your current deal.

If your lender won’t allow you to let your flat while you are away on sabbatical – which I suspect is pretty unlikely – an alternative would be to ask if you can reduce your outgoings by taking a six-month mortgage payment holiday. But doing that would have a seriously negative effect on your credit file and increase both the amount of your outstanding mortgage balance and the amount of interest you have to pay. So I wouldn’t recommend it as a sensible option.

As well as talking to your mortgage lender, you’ll also need to let your buildings and contents insurers know about your proposed absence.