Be clear on the legislation
1) Sign up to a Tenancy Deposit Scheme
When a landlord or letting agent takes a deposit from a tenant, the deposit must be protected in a government-authorised tenancy deposit scheme. Deposits are protected to ensure tenants get all or part of their deposit back, when they are entitled to it, and encourage tenants to look after the property they are renting.
Within 14 days of taking the deposit, you must provide your tenant with details of how the deposit is being protected. For more information, check out the Directgov website.
2) Be clear on Houses in Multiple Occupancy legislation
The Government has a number of different definitions for what constitutes an HMO, but essentially it is a single property which is turned into two separate homes for tenants, though they will share main facilities, such as bathroom or kitchen.
If that sounds like your rental property, then you will need a special HMO license.
For full information, have a read of the Communities and Local Government website.
3) Get ready for the new regulation
There’s plenty of new rules coming in as well, including a register for landlords. You can be removed from the register for persistent poor performance in terms of carrying out repairs and returning deposits.
Other measures include mandatory written tenancy agreements, and regulation of private sector letting and management agents.
Retweet
Comments (
Facebook
22
Love