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(This overview is for residential renting. Renting a room rather than a flat or house will be subject to different legislations)
You are urged to seek professional advice on all legal issues
General points
- Tenants have a right to "quiet enjoyment" which means the freedom to enjoy the property as any "owner" would - free from unnecessary interference by the landlord.
- Tenancy agreements are partly contractual, i.e. an agreement between landlord and tenant which can be enforced by a court of law. And, particularly with residential tenancies (as opposed to commercial or business tenancies), they are partly governed by statutory (Act of Parliament) rules which cannot be over-ridden by the contractual rules.
- Residential tenancy agreement terms must be deemed "fair" and are governed by the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999. An unfair term in a tenancy agreement may well reassure the landlord, or indeed the tenant, on some point, but it would be unenforceable at law.
Getting a Tenancy Agreement
Dealing with Problems
Repairs and improvements
Getting a Tenancy Agreement
What type of tenancy will I have?
The type of tenancy you have depends to a large degree on when it was taken out. If you are a tenant and you are unsure what type of tenancy you have, check your tenancy agreement. If you don't have one, ask your landlord for a copy of it. Here are some guidelines:
- It started before 15 January 1989: it is likely to be a regulated (or protected) tenancy.
- It started on or after 28 February 1997: it is an assured shorthold tenancy, unless the landlord has said in writing that it is an assured tenancy. The tenancy may start either with a fixed period or as a 'periodic' tenancy which runs from week to week or from month to month (depending on when rent is paid). Either way, the tenant has the right to stay for at least six months.
- It started on or after 15 January 1989 and 27 February 1997: it will be an assured shorthold tenancy if the landlord made this clear on a special legal form at the beginning. Otherwise it will be an assured tenancy. The tenancy must have had an initial fixed term of at least six months.
Do I need to have a lease?
Under English law, tenancy agreements can be created orally and do not need to have a written agreement to be legally binding – in fact, once a person is given possession (exclusively) of land or property (usually evidenced by possession of the keys) and the owner accepts rent payments, a tenancy comes into existence legally.
However, getting an agreement in writing is strongly recommended as oral agreements are obviously difficult to enforce because there is often no proof of what has been agreed, or a particular problem may have arisen which the agreement did not cover.
Is there a ‘standard’ lease?
The type of tenancy you have depends to a large degree on when it was taken out, but is likely to be an assured shorthold tenancy.
Can the landlord makeup the lease himself?
There are obligations you and your landlord have which may not be set down in the agreement but which are given by law and are implied into all tenancy agreements. These terms form part of the contract, even though they have not been specifically agreed between your landlord and you.
What does the lease have to include?
Written agreements need to specify certain things, including:
- the type of tenancy you have
- your name and your landlord’s name and the address of the property which is being let
- the date the tenancy began
- details of whether other people are allowed the use of the property, and if so, which rooms
- the duration of the tenancy, that is, whether it runs out on a certain date
- the amount of rent payable, how often and when it should be paid and how often and when it can be increased.
- whether your landlord will provide any services, for example, laundry, maintenance of common parts or meals and whether there are service charges for these
- the length of notice which you and your landlord need to give if the tenancy is to be ended. Note that there are statutory rules about how much notice should be given and these will depend on the type of tenancy and why it is due to end.
You are obliged to take proper care of the accommodation and your landlord is also obliged by law to give their address.
Can the terms of the tenancy agreement be changed during the period of the tenancy?
A tenancy agreement can normally only be changed if both you and your landlord agree, in which case the change should be recorded in writing, either by drawing up a new written document setting out the terms of the tenancy or by amending the existing written tenancy agreement.
An oral agreement can also be varied, and usually the variation will be oral too. In the case of a dispute, evidence of the variation can be provided if there were witnesses to the new agreement or simply by both parties acting on the variation, for example, by paying and accepting a new rent.
Problems
What happens if the landlord wants the property back before the end of the tenancy?
There are many rules governing the notice needed for ending tenancy agreements and applying for eviction orders from the court; in most cases, your landlord has to serve a special notice on you before you can apply for an eviction order.
The rules vary depending on what kind of tenancy it is, and in some cases, more than one notice is needed.
If a private landlord wants to end a tenancy on the date the agreement expires, they must usually serve a Notice conforming to special rules.
If you receive a Notice of seeking possession, you should get expert advice, but bear in mind that once your landlord or you have given notice, this does not necessarily mean you can be evicted.
In nearly all cases a court order is needed, and further notice of court proceedings is often required.
What will the court do?
Whether the court will allow the eviction will depend on the kind of tenancy and the reasons for seeking eviction. However, in some cases, a court order may not be necessary. For example, a court order for eviction is not needed to evict you from your home if you have a resident landlord and the tenancy started after 15 January 1989.
What do I do if my landlord is threatening me?
If you are subjected to harassment, the matter should be reported to the Tenancy Relations Officer of the local authority or to the police.
It is an offence for your landlord to do anything which they know is likely to make you leave the home or prevent you from exercising your legal rights. This would include, for example, repeatedly disturbing you late at night or obstructing access to the home, creating noise, disconnecting supplies of water, gas or electricity where your landlord knows that this is likely to drive you out or discourage you from insisting on your legal rights.
The Protection from Harassment Act 1997 also offers protection against harassment by a landlord, even where they are not necessarily directly trying to evict a tenant.
Repairs and improvements
What should I do if the flat is in need of repair?
Your landlord is legally obliged to carry out basic repairs and keep the installations for the supply of water, gas, electricity, sanitation, space heating and heating water in good working order
If the tenancy agreement specifies that your landlord should provide certain services, for example, gardening or lighting common parts, he must do so.
If the landlord won't do minor repairs, a tenant can get the work done themselves. The cost of the repairs can be taken out of the rent. But the tenant should get advice first, because a procedure must be followed.
They must:
- give the landlord plenty of notice;
- get estimates for the work; and
- ask the landlord to pay for the completed repair before keeping back any rent.
What do I do if the landlord can’t be contacted or is refusing to organise repairs?
If a home is not 'fit for human habitation' (its condition is seriously affecting the health or safety of the tenants) or if it needs other kinds of major repairs, a tenant should contact the local council's environmental health officer.
If the house or flat's condition is affecting a tenant's health and the local council won't do anything, the tenant can get the magistrate's court to force the landlord to fix the property (under Environmental Protection Act 1990). A tenant will need expert help in bringing a complaint.
See the useful numbers
What if I want to make improvements to the house or flat?
Private tenants can make improvements to their home only if the landlord has given their written agreement first. Tenants cannot claim back the money they've spent, but the landlord cannot put up the rent because of improvements made by the tenant.
Reminder: Please seek professional advice if you are facing any of the issues raised in this overview.
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