Private rented housing

This tenancy is the most common in the private rented sector and is for properties that do not have a resident landlord. This may be issued when you rent an entire property, or a room with shared communal areas. The AST must be for a term of 6 months or longer.

You should always receive a tenancy in writing. Both you, as a new tenant, and the landlord will need to sign this. The tenancy agreement should include:

• the date the agreement started
• the amount of rent due and the date it is due
• a rent review clause
• the length of the agreement
• the name and address of the landlord

If the fixed term of the AST has ended and a further tenancy for a fixed period has not been issued, you will become a periodic tenant.

Ending your AST agreement

If you want to end your tenancy agreement, you will likely have to provide a written notice, in line with the rent payments:

• if you pay rent monthly, you would need to provide 1 months notice
• if you pay weekly, you would need to provide 4 weeks notice

This is, unless there is a notice clause in your tenancy agreement that requires a minimum of 2 months notice. You may be able to negotiate the length of notice with your landlord.

Landlord notices

If you have received a notice, you can access further advice on our homelessness pages. There are two ways for the landlord to end an AST:

Section 21 notice

This can be issued regardless of any breach of tenancy agreement, and as long as it has been served in the correct legal way. In this case, possession is granted to the landlord. This notice:

• must be issued on a Form 6A
• must be at least 2 months in length
• cannot be issued to expire before the end of any initial fixed term period

For the section 21 notice to be valid, the landlord must have carried out the following actions:

• protected your deposit and provided you with written evidence of the scheme they have used within 30 days of receiving it
• issued you with a Right to Rent leaflet at the beginning of your tenancy agreement
• issued you with a copy of the latest gas safety record (if the property has gas), electrical safety check, and energy performance certificate (EPC)

Section 8 notice

This can be issued when there has been a breach of the tenancy agreement, such as:

• rent arrears
• persistent late rent payments
• antisocial behaviour

For the landlord to issue a section 8 notice they must:

• list the grounds that the notice has been served on (there are a prescribed set of grounds for possession)
• be able to prove that the grounds apply in court

Depending on the ground for possession stated in the notice, the landlord must give you either 2 weeks or 2 months notice. They will not be able to apply to the court for possession until this period has passed.

A licence is a personal permission for someone to occupy accommodation. This does not give the licensee a legal interest in any land or property. A licence can be for a fixed term of periodic and applies when:

• there is no intention of to enter into a legal relationship
• there is no right to exclusive occupation
• the arrangement is for tied accommodation (accommodation that comes with work)

You are likely to receive a licence, sometimes without a written agreement, for the following situations:

• living with friends with their agreement
• living with parents with their agreement
• living in a room of the property owners (lodging)
• living in a hostel
• living in a hotel
• when required to live in accommodation under an employment contract, for the better performance of the employee’s duties

Ending a licence agreement

To end a licence agreement, the landlord should provide at least 28 days notice. That is unless there are concerns that involve a risk to you or your landlord if you were to remain in the property.

If you have been asked to leave, you can access further advice on our homelessness pages.

It will be easier to manage your own private rented property if you have planned and saved for it. Renting accommodation can be expensive, but you may find cheaper options in other areas.

To secure a private rented property you should expect to pay:

Holding deposit: up to 1 weeks rent

This reserves a property and should only be paid if you are serious about accepting the property. There are situations where this money will not be refunded to you. If you sign the tenancy agreement, this deposit should be returned to you within 7 days, or you could decide to put this money towards the full deposit or rent in advance.

Tenancy deposit: up to 5 weeks rent

The landlord will retain this deposit for the duration of your tenancy agreement. They must protect this deposit in a recognised deposit protection scheme and provide you with written information on which scheme they have used. If they fail to protect your deposit, they will be unable to issue you with a Section 21 notice unless they return your deposit or give you new written information about the protection scheme they have used.

If you leave the property in good condition you should receive the deposit back in full. The landlord or letting agent will discuss this with you.

Rent in advance: normally 1 months rent

There is no limit to the amount of rent in advance a landlord could ask for. However, it is normal for this to be 1 month. You may be asked for more rent in advance if you are claiming benefits or do not pass a credit check.

Furniture, essential items, and removal fees

You may already have furniture and essential items, however, these may not fit into your new home. Unless you are renting a fully furnished property or room, you should also add this to the list of expected expenses.

The amount you need to save will depend on the cost of the rent. Here are examples of the upfront costs and how these are calculated:

• if you find a property for £1,000 per calendar month, you will need £230.72 for the holding deposit (£1,000 x 12 / 52), plus £1,153.85 for the tenancy deposit (£1,000 x 12 / 52 x 5), and a further £1,000 for the rent in advance. Without furniture and essential items this is a total of £2,384.57
• if you find a room in a shared house for £450 per calendar month you will need £103.85 for the holding deposit (£450 x 12 / 52), plus £519.23 for the tenancy deposit (£450 x 12 / 52 x 5), and a further £450 for the rent in advance. Without furniture and essential items this is a total of £1,073.08

For tenancies that commenced after 1 June 2019, the landlord and letting agent cannot charge for things like:

• references
• administration
• check out inspections
• credit and immigration checks
• renewing your tenancy when your fixed term ends

If the landlord has charged you, and you have paid for a fee that has been banned, a Section 21 notice cannot be served until they refund your money.

Once you have moved in, you will be responsible for ongoing monthly costs of running your home. Unless specified as part of your rent, you might need to pay for the following items in addition to your monthly rent:

• water bills – usually monthly
• service charge – mainly when living in flats and can be paid monthly or annually
• council tax – can be paid monthly or annually
• gas and electric bills – payments can vary from regular direct debits or a pre-payment meter

You may also have financial commitments like outstanding loans and subscriptions that you will need to budget for from your income.

There are resources online that you can access to help you budget for your new home.