MANY LANDLORDS STILL CONFUSED OVER TENANCY AGREEMENT CHANGES

Andrew Luxton MRICS FARLA, Partner in charge of Stags Residential Lettings Department confirms that recent reports indicate that many landlords are still confused over changes in legislation that affect Assured Shorthold Tenancy Agreements (AST) that came into place in October 2015.

Most importantly this included additional obligations that landlords must comply with before serving an eviction notice. The Section 21 up until recent years has been known as the non-fault notice, with the landlord required to provide only basic information for the notice to be valid, whilst tenants have limited grounds on which to dispute a possession claim. However, the new form sets out strict requirements which the landlord must complete prior to serving the notice, including providing the tenant with an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) a Gas Safety Certificate and the government’s How To Rent Guide. Landlords or letting agents that do not follow the requirements could see the notice invalidated leading to any cases being struck out of court, further details and possibly having to pay the tenant’s legal costs.

Andrew Luxton confirms that there have been many legislation and compliance changes affecting landlords and as a firm we ensure that our landlord clients are kept fully up to date. If you require further information or clarification on anything that maybe affecting the letting of your property then contact your local Stags Lettings office.