Managing a tenancy - information for landlords

Starting a tenancy and tenancy agreements

A tenancy agreement is a contract between you and your tenants. It sets out the legal terms and conditions of the tenancy. It can be written down or oral.

A tenancy can either be:

fixed term (running for a set period of time)
periodic (running on a week-by-week or month-by-month basis)

The tenancy agreement should include:

the names of all people involved
the rental price and how it’s paid
information on how and when the rent will be reviewed
the deposit amount and how it will be protected
when the deposit can be fully or partly withheld, for example to repair damage caused by tenants
the property address
the start and end date of the tenancy
any tenant or landlord obligations
who has responsibility for the bills

Other information that can be included:

whether the tenancy can be ended early and how this can be done
who’s responsible for minor repairs (other than those that the landlord is legally responsible for)
whether the property can be let to someone else (sublet) or have lodger

Template tenancy agreement

A free of charge model tenancy agreement has been designed by the government. This is for use when a landlord and tenant are entering into a shorthold assured tenancy agreement in the private rented sector. There is no legal requirement to use this template.

Charges

What you can charge a tenant for is restricted by law, you can only charge a tenant for:

rent
bills for utilities, phone, broadband and TV
a tenancy deposit
a holding deposit
replacing a key
if the rent is rent 14 days (or more) late
changing the tenancy (only if the tenant asked for the change)
ending the tenancy early
council tax
a TV licence
the cost of repairs if you damage the property

If you include any other fees, it might be illegal, and you could be asked to return them to the tenancy by the court. Any court action brought may incur court costs to you as the landlord.

Right to rent

Before the start of a new tenancy, you must check that all tenants aged 18 and over have the legal right to rent your property. This is even if they are not named on the tenancy agreement, or there’s no written tenancy agreement.

It is against the law to only check people you think are not British citizens, you must check all new tenants.

More information about right to rent checks can be found on the GOV.UK website.

Tenancy deposit protection (TDP) scheme

You must place your tenants’ deposit in a tenancy deposit protection (TDP) scheme if you rent out your home on an assured shorthold tenancy that started after 6 April 2007.

If you receive a valuable item as a deposit instead of money (for example a car or watch), you do not have to put it in a TDP .

These government-backed schemes ensure your tenants will get their deposit back if they:

meet the terms of your tenancy agreement.
do not damage the property.
pay the rent and bills.

You (or your letting agent) must put your tenants’ deposit in the scheme within 30 days of getting it.

You can use any of the following schemes if your property is in England or Wales:

All Tenancy Deposit Schemes offer you 2 options:

the scheme holds the deposit for free - known as a ‘custodial’ scheme.
you or the agent holds the deposit, and you pay the scheme to insure it - known as an ‘insured’ scheme.

At the end of a tenancy the deposit must be returned to your tenants within 10 days of you both agreeing how much they’ll get back.

If there is a dispute about how much is to be returned to the tenant, the deposit is protected in the scheme until the issue is settled.

If you’re in an ‘insured’ scheme, you or the agent must give the deposit to the TDP scheme. They will hold it until the issue is settled.

Holding deposits

If you’ve received a holding deposit from your future tenants (money to ‘hold’ a property before an agreement is signed), you do not have to protect it. Once they become tenants the holding deposit becomes a deposit, and you must protect it.

Documents you must supply your tenant

When you are setting up your new tenancy you must supply your tenant with important documents. Without some of them you will not be able to pursue an eviction and you could be acting unlawfully.

A signed copy of the tenancy agreement – your tenant and you will need to have signed this agreement and it is essential that both you and the tenant retain a signed copy. This will help your tenant to conduct their tenancy properly and give you a clear point of reference in managing the tenancy fairly.
Deposit protection documents – you and your tenant should keep copies or the record of where and how you have protected their deposit.
Energy performance certificate – tenants need to understand how energy efficient your property is so that they can budget for the bills. All properties in the UK must have an EPC of E or above and you must demonstrate this to your tenants before they rent their home from you. Get a new energy certificate - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Gas safety certificate – You must give your tenants a copy of a gas safety certificate. It is important to show that the property is safe, and the appliances have been recently checked. You will need to provide a new one each year.
How to rent booklet - You should give a current version of the How to rent checklist to your tenant at the start of their tenancy. If you renew the assured shorthold tenancy you should issue it again if the checklist has been updated.

Letting agents and property managers

If you use a letting agent or property manager and need to raise a concern or complaint about them them, see our Letting agents and property managers redress schemes page for further information about the scheme.