Published this week, here are the new government guides for the private rented sector, as well our own Guide for prospective tenants and details of Our tenant commitment for people renting through us:
How to rent – a guide for current and prospective tenants
This guide is for tenants and landlords in the private rented sector to help them understand their rights and responsibilities. It provides a checklist and more detailed information on each stage of the process, including:
- what to look out for before renting
- living in a rented home
- what happens at the end of a tenancy
- what to do if things go wrong.
How to rent a safe home – a guide for current and prospective tenants
This guide is for tenants and explains the main hazards which may make a property unsafe to live in. It explains tenants’ and landlords’ obligations and how to raise concerns.
How to let – a guide for current and prospective private residential landlords
This guide is for current and prospective landlords. It explains the responsibilities, legal requirements and best practice for letting a property in the private rented sector. It is not intended to cover leasehold, holiday lets or ‘resident landlords’ who let to lodgers.
How to lease – a guide for current and prospective leaseholders.
This guide is for current and prospective leaseholders and sets out the differences between leasehold and freehold property and the rights, obligations and implications of being a leaseholder.
Our tenant commitment
We charge tenants one-off fees to cover referencing and check-in costs (as both services are provided by a third party). We do not charge tenants for the production of the tenancy agreement and there are no tenant renewal or check-out fees.
View our properties and register for property updates here.
Tenants can be assured:
- of good property standards with all properties on our books subject to an appraisal
- that we offer a quality property management system for all homes we let, providing reassurance that all issues will be dealt with promptly
- that we are a member of the Property Ombudsman and ARLA Propertymark and have a compliance procedure in place
- of the flexibility to request a tenancy to up to three years' duration, so people have the peace of mind that they can make themselves at home for the foreseeable future (subject to the landlord's agreement and any price increase during that time will be tied to a formula which will be set out in the tenancy agreement)
- of the option to request a break clause that allows the ending of the tenancy with two months' notice usually any time after the first four-to-ten months (or a period of time to be agreed with the landlord) in case circumstances change
- your deposit is held by the government-backed Tenancy Deposit Scheme.
