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• Read the agreement, make sure you understand it. If you don’t understand it, don’t sign it and get some advice.
• Talk the agreement through with all the parties involved, your potential housemates, your parents and guarantors (if you have a guarantor). Remember the tenancy agreement is legally binding once you have signed it and it will affect ALL of you. If one of your housemates fails to pay their portion of the rent and you have a Joint tenancy agreement you will be liable for their share too. If you have a guarantor this will probably include them as well. This will also apply if there is any damage caused; this may affect your deposit regardless of who caused the damage.
• Make sure you understand what you have to pay and when. If your tenancy starts in August, you will need to have the money available. Remember this will be before you get your student funding for the next year and you may need to plan for this now.
• How much is the deposit? When do you have to pay it? How is it being protected? What do you need to do if at the end of the tenancy there is a disagreement about the deposit?
• Who is going to pay the bills, you or your landlord? If your landlord is going to pay the bills are there any restrictions?
• What about a TV licence?. Who is responsible to apply for and pay for the TV licence? Is this covered in your tenancy agreement?
• Both you and your landlord have rights and responsibilities, make sure you understand them.
• If your landlord promises something or tells you any information about the property, get it in writing. For more information on renting a student house.

If you want further advice about Renting and Tenancy Agreements speak to a specialist adviser in the Student Support and Advice Centre. To book a confidential telephone appointment with an adviser please email: studentsupport@lincoln.ac.uk  or telephone 01522 837080. 

Tenancy agreement

A tenancy agreement will always exist between a landlord and tenant, whether or not it is in writing. A tenancy agreement consists of the arrangements the landlord and tenant have made about the tenancy, as well as any rights automatically incorporated in the tenancy agreement by law (statutory rights). The tenancy agreement can give both landlord and tenant more than their statutory rights ; it cannot take away rights that they have by law.

The ‘express terms’ of the tenancy agreement are those which were specifically agreed in writing (or orally, although this is harder to prove) between a landlord and tenant. ‘Implied terms’ are terms which, whilst not specifically in the agreement, are part of it because they are either written down in an Act of Parliament (‘statutory implied terms’) or have been established in the past by cases in court.

For more Government guidance on how to rent.

A tenancy agreement can, therefore, be made up of:

• A written signed agreement. These are express terms of the agreement.
• What was agreed orally. These are also express terms of the agreement, but may be difficult to prove, unless there were witnesses.
• Any rights conferred by statute or established by case law. These are implied terms of the agreement.
• What was written in the original rent book.
• Any arrangements/agreements made since the tenancy started. These are also implied terms of the agreement.

If you have a problem with your landlord, the first thing to do is look at any written agreement you have. This could be in a contract or it could be a letter or email from your landlord/agent.

The tenant has a right of quiet enjoyment of the tenancy. This means that you can occupy the premises without being disturbed by the landlord or her/his agents. Quiet enjoyment is an implied contractual right whether or not it is written into the tenancy agreement.

Tenant Fees Act 2019

From 1 June 2019, the only payments that landlords or letting agents can charge to tenants in relation to new contracts are:

• Rent.
• A refundable tenancy deposit capped at no more than 5 weeks’ rent where the total annual rent is less than £50,000, or 6 weeks’ rent where the total annual rent is £50,000 or above.
• A refundable holding deposit (to reserve a property) capped at no more than 1 week’s rent.
• Payments associated with early termination of the tenancy, when requested by the tenant.
• Payments capped at £50 (or reasonably incurred costs, if higher) for the variation, assignment or novation of a tenancy.
• Payments in respect of utilities, communication services, TV licence and Council Tax.
• A default fee for late payment of rent and replacement of a lost key/security device giving access to the housing, where required under a tenancy agreement.

For more information on the Tenant Fees Act 2019.

Entering the property without the tenant’s permission.

If the landlord is repeatedly entering the accommodation without the tenant’s permission, s/he is committing a civil offence because:

• S/he is in breach of contract, because s/he has broken the implied term to allow the tenant uninterrupted use of the accommodation. This is known as breach of quiet enjoyment.
• S/he is trespassing on the tenant’s premises.

Safety of gas appliances

Landlords must arrange and pay for safety checks and any necessary work to be carried out on appliances at least once every twelve months. The checks must be carried out by a person who is registered with, or employed by a company registered with, Gas Safe Register, which is monitored by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

If you are worried about gas fittings and you have been ill, suffering, for example, from lethargy, fatigue, headaches, nausea, confusion, vomiting, giddiness, fainting or convulsions, talk to your GP as soon as possible as you may have carbon monoxide poisoning.

For more information, please check gov.uk.

What furniture must be provided

If a property is let furnished, there is no legal definition of what furniture must be provided or its condition. Normally you could expect a level of furnishing that would be reasonable to enable you to live in the accommodation. This includes:-

• table and chairs in the kitchen/living room
• sofa and/or armchairs in the living room
• a bed and storage for clothes in each bedroom
• heating appliances
• curtains and floor coverings
• a cooker, fridge, kitchen utensils and crockery

If the tenant leaves possessions behind

It is unlawful for a landlord to try to keep or take an occupier’s belongings in most situations. If this is done to try to force her/him to leave, it will probably count as unlawful harassment or illegal eviction.
Where a tenancy has ended and belongings are left behind by an occupier, a landlord has a legal obligation to take care of the belongings .

The landlord should:

• write to the former occupier giving details of the belongings held, and when and how they can be collected
• give the former occupier reasonable time to arrange to collect the belongings
• advise that if the belongings are not collected within the time specified, they will be sold or disposed of

Inventory

An inventory is a list of the furniture and other contents which have been provided in the accommodation by the landlord. It is to the advantage of both tenant and landlord to agree an inventory, since this reduces the probability of a dispute over whether there are missing or damaged items.

The landlord normally draws up an inventory. It should list everything provided in the accommodation for use by the tenant, with a description of the items, including their age and condition.

You should check that you agree with the inventory, sign and date it. You may note any discrepancies (particularly relating to the condition of objects) on the inventory. Take photographs if possible. It is good practice for the landlord to give you a copy.

If the landlord does not draw up and agree an inventory, you could draw one up as soon as you move into the property and get it witnessed (signed and dated) by an independent witness (not a close relative or friend).

Cleaning furniture

The tenancy agreement may state who is responsible for cleaning, for example, any curtains, chair covers or carpets.

If nothing is said in the tenancy agreement about cleaning, the tenant is responsible for keeping fittings and furniture in good condition, which includes cleanliness.