Option 2
Nothing happens. You continue paying your rent and the landlord continues accepting it. Then, without any further commitments, undertakings or paperwork, the landlord reaches that secure place, beyond the fixed term where they can obtain guaranteed possession if things go pear shaped – and
tenants don’t have to commit for another whole fixed term.
This type of arrangement is called a
statutory periodic tenancy. It works brilliantly for many landlords and tenants because it offers such great flexibility. It’s rarer in agency lettings because, frankly, there’s no paperwork that agents can charge for. Under a statutory periodic, landlords and tenants are each able to give notice whenever they choose – so long as they observe the specific rules on giving notice to quit. One of my assured shorthold tenants stayed on for 13 years without ever needing a new lease.
Option 3
One or other of you decides to call it a day. In that case, landlords or tenants must give written notice to close down the tenancy.
There are other variations on this theme, but in the overwhelming majority of cases one of the above will happen.
Giving Notice To Leave
Letting people know your intentions in writing is essential. Don’t imagine that your landlord/agent will somehow just guess that you intend leaving at the end of your fixed term. On the contrary, unless they hear from you, they’ll assume that you want to stay on. You must tell them that you intend leaving in writing – at least one month beforehand. So, if you intend leaving at the end of a six-month fixed term, write and inform your landlord that you will be leaving then, no later than five months into your lease.
What You Need To Know About Leases
- They must be signed by both landlord and tenant (or agent).
- They must be witnessed and dated to be valid.
- The landlord/agent has a copy, you have an identical copy.
- You are legally obliged to observe all the terms of the lease you have signed, unless something has been added which is not acceptable in law (if you’ve been asked to sign something that is obviously weighted against you, get your local housing officer or Citizen’s Advice Bureau to check it out).
Security Of Tenure Really Matters
Good tenants who pay their rent on time, look after the unit and don’t cause damage (or hassle the landlord with an endless stream of daft demands) have all the security they’ll usually ever need, so don’t get too hooked up on lengthy fixed terms. Landlords/agents want tenants in place and paying rent. That security aspect is already largely in your own hands and it’s called good tenant conduct.
Landlords/agents only bother with all the hassle and costs of forcing out troublesome tenants in the most unusual of circumstances. Abide by your lease and you’ll become a welcome partner in what can often become a lengthy business partnership.
Break Clauses
Sometimes, before agreeing to rent a property for a fixed period of time, a tenant will ask for a
break clause to be inserted. These give an opportunity for a tenant to leave on a certain date, agreed mutually before the tenancy begins, written into the lease and usually mid-way through at, say, three months. They are not standard clauses, and will certainly not be found in a standard lease. They are quite common in more expensive units, and almost standard in company lettings. Seek specialist advice, or use a very reputable agency if you are looking for this type of arrangement.
A Reality Check For Many Tenants On Tight Budgets
No matter how well informed they are, tenants can and do still find themselves in property which is unfit to live in, or positively unsafe. The huge demand, particularly in university towns, and now some very expensive cities (especially in the south east) has caused a real shortage of safe, affordable accommodation. If you have been fortunate/ determined enough to obtain a lease from your landlord/agent, which covers the full period you wish to live there under the first fixed term, you do have the relatively safe option of asking your local environmental health department to inspect, and at least check if you are covered under new and existing safety laws.
Why? Because, no matter what the outcome, you can’t lose your home until the fixed term has expired unless you break a lease term.
If however you have only been able to obtain a ‘fix’ of six months when perhaps you need nine to complete your course, or you have a year’s short-term employment contract and a six month fixed term, you run the genuine risk of being asked to leave if you complain at all. Landlords running unsafe multi-let properties can take a very dim view of being ‘reported to the council’.
Meanwhile all too often, tenants dependent on lease extensions are too afraid to complain about anything at all. It can take a brave person indeed to insist to some of the more assertive landlords that, as tenants, they enjoy certain rights, however limited.
- Being prepared before you become a tenant is the best safeguard you can have.
- Being aware if you already are a tenant is the second best.
Never forget, your lease does offer you some safeguards, if you know where to find them. While some landlords can become a bit belligerent, they too are bound by the contracts they entered into when they took your rent. And there are a surprising number of organisations out there to help you through difficult times.