Sali Brown, Managing Director of Chelton Brown continues her series of articles about renting out a property and the benefits of the service of a lettings agency.
THERE are several different types of tenancies in England and Wales with several different types of statutory regimes.
Historically, tenancies were covered by the Rent Act 1977. These tenancies can no longer be created and are generally dying out. However, these tenancies provided a very high level of protection to tenants for life and benefited from below market rents.
The vast majority of tenancies created today, however, now fall under the Housing Act 1988. The Act applies where tenancies are created on or after 15 January 1989 and creates one of two types of tenancies. The tenancy was either an Assured Tenancy or an Assured Shorthold Tenancy if the landlord served notice advising the tenant that his tenancy was not an Assured Tenancy.
An Assured Tenancy is a tenancy for life, which means it is very difficult to evict a tenant, and a tenancy at a market rent. Assured Shorthold Tenancies are created, as stated above, on the service of the notice or those created after 28 February 1997. The vast majority of tenancies today are Assured Shorthold Tenancies, which are tenancies at a market rent and permit the landlord to obtain possession much more easily.
Contractual Tenancies, where the rent exceeds £100,000 per annum, are not governed by any specific statute but are a contractual arrangement between the landlord and tenant.
Similarly, The Deregulation Act 2015 has placed more pressure on property standards. If a landlord is served with a notice under the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) which requires the property to be improved, or allows the local authority to do work itself, then they will not be able to serve a notice under Section 21 for the next six months. Section 21 is concerned with the legal eviction notice template a landlord can give to a tenant to regain possession of a property at the end of an Assured Shorthold Tenancy (AST).
In addition, if a tenant complains to a landlord in writing about the condition of the property and then complains to the local authority, which takes enforcement action under the HHSRS, then any Section 21 Notice served on the tenant between their initial written complaint to the landlord and the enforcement activity will be invalid.
For more information, contact Chelton Brown on 01604 603433 or 01327 879431 or visit the website www.cheltonbrown.co.uk