Tom

Home businesses are now common but until recently giving a tenant consent to operate a business from their rented home was tricky because the landlord did not want to inadvertently give the tenant a business tenancy that could be caught by Part 2 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954. A tenancy under those provisions…

Firstly, we should remind ourselves why a landlord should carry out repairs: • Meet implied obligations (law) • Meet express obligations (tenancy agreement) • Preserve the landlord’s asset • Keep the tenant happy (a happy tenant is a good tenant) The longer a landlord takes to carry out a repair the more likely they are…

Tenancy Agreements often include terms such as ‘The tenant shall make good all damage and breakages to the property and its contents that may occur during the term, that are the responsibility of the tenant (with the exception of fair wear and tear and accidental damage by fire).’ The part in question here is the…

The question relates to the release of a deposit from the Deposit Protection Service (DPS)… There is no time limit to wait contained in the Housing Act 2004 once a repayment request has been made so it will be a case of common sense. Clearly you need to give sufficient time for the tenant to…

Tenancies granted before 1 October 2015 Where a tenancy is granted in England on or before 1 October 2015, Section 21 Housing Act 1988 contains no time limit as to when a section 21 notice may be acted upon once expired. Therefore, once served, a possession order may be obtained any time after it’s expiry…

Paragraph 3(1) of Schedule 6 to the Electricity Act 1989 makes a deemed contract between the electricity company and the owner of the premises the moment the premises become unoccupied: 3.— (1) Where an electricity supplier supplies electricity to any premises otherwise than in pursuance of a contract, the supplier shall be deemed to have…

Before letting a property, you may need to obtain permission as follows: Council if you are changing the use of a residential property from family use to a House of Multiple Occupation (HMO) as defined in the Housing Act 2004, then you may need planning permission from the local council. If a landlord lets a…

When we say ‘sharers’ we are not referring to married couples, civil partners or common-in-law partners we are referring to friends, co-workers or in some cases relatives who choose to live together as tenants. Temporary Arrangement Sharers are rarely a long-term arrangement so may not suit landlords who favour long-term tenants. Shortly after the start…

6-month fixed term tenancies are extremely common but have you ever wondered why 6 months? Historical When the Housing Act 1988 first came into force, it implemented a minimum term of six months for ASTs. However, the Housing Act 1996 abolished this rule for all new tenancies commencing on or after 27 February 1997 by…

The Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property) (England and Wales) Regulations 2015 were recently passed. From 1 April 2018, all rented property which is to have a new tenancy must have an Energy Efficiency Rating of at least “E”. This requirement also applies to all renewal tenancies to the same tenant for the same property on…