We recognise the important role of landlords in providing homes in the Borough. We can provide advice to landlords on the condition of properties, grants, energy efficiency ratings
and licensing.
Landlord responsibilities
You are a landlord if you rent out your property. As a landlord you must:
Keep your rented properties safe and free from health hazards.
Ensure all gas and electrical equipment is safely installed and maintained. Find out more about electrical safety standards in the private rented sector on the Government website (external link).
Provide an Energy Performance Certificate for the property. Find out more about Energy Performance Certificates on the Government website (external link).
protect your tenant’s deposit in a government approved scheme. Find out more about deposit protection schemes and landlords on the Government website (external link).
check your tenant has the right to rent your property if it’s in England. View the prove your right to rent in England webpage on the Govenrnmet website (external link).
Provide your tenant with a copy of the ‘how to rent’ checklist when they start renting from you.
You can find out more information about letting your home on the Government website (external link) and the National Residential Landlord’s Association website (external link).
Tenancy agreements
It is good practice to have a written tenancy agreement, but this is not essential to create a tenancy. When creating a tenancy, take care to ensure it is the correct type to suit your plans for the property. The most common type of tenancy is an assured shorthold tenancy. If you are unsure on which type of tenancy to create, you should seek legal advice.
Obtaining legal possession
A notice to quit must be served to end any tenancy. If you are unsure how to serve a valid notice, you should seek legal advice.
For all possession actions, the landlord must get an order for possession from a county court before the tenant can be lawfully evicted. The landlord cannot apply for this order before the relevant notice has run out.
The court order will specify a date by which the tenant must leave. If they don’t leave by this date, the landlord must ask the court to appoint a bailiff to carry out the eviction.
Repair obligations
Landlords are responsible for repairs to the exterior and structure of a property including problems with the roof, chimneys, walls, guttering and drains.
Landlords must make sure the equipment for supplying water, gas and electricity is kept in safe working order.
If a landlord needs access to the property to inspect it and do repairs, they should give reasonable notice and arrange a suitable time to visit (unless there's an emergency). Your tenancy agreement may say how much notice you should give.
If your assured short-hold tenancy started or was renewed on or after 1 October 2015, tenants have some legal protection against revenge eviction if they have complained about repairs the landlord has not completed.
For more information visit making repairs webpage on Government website (external link).