A tenancy agreement is a legal document that covers a common understanding between the landlord and a tenant. It needs to be duly signed by both landlord and tenant before renting the property.
A tenancy agreement is not a compulsory formality by any means and it should be done to safeguard the interests of landlords and tenants. A tenancy agreement or rental agreement is the contract between the landlord and the tenant or renter. Instead of agreeing to terms orally, it should be documented as a physical paper copy. This agreement document can be made a legal document by drafting a document by consulting a legal solicitor.
On one hand, the tenancy agreement makes the landlord an authority to receive rental payments and on the other hand, it allows the tenant to legally stay in the house property and pay rent to the landlord. Tenancy agreement contains all the agreed terms and conditions documented that both the parties have to comply with. Once the
landlord and the tenant entered into the formal tenancy agreement, then it is legally binding on them to follow all the rules and processes mentioned in the tenancy agreement. The landlord and tenant should maintain a separate agreement copy with them so that they can fall back to it in case of any dispute or disagreement.
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Below pointers could be taken into consideration while making the Tenancy Agreement.
- The primary contact information of the Landlord and Tenant:
Rental property agreement is done between a landlord and the tenant (One or more family members from the tenant side may be included). Primarily, the agreement should document the contact information of both landlord and tenant. This information may include address, contact details, email ids, etc.
2. Details about deposit money:
In most cases, landlords ask for a certain deposit amount from tenants. The record of this deposit amount should come under the agreement. In addition, more details about when this deposit amount will be returned to the tenant should be clearly highlighted. The landlord would expect to get his/her property back in a good condition by end of the tenancy period. If that is not the case then he is entitled to deduct some or the whole deposit amount to make up for the property repair work. It is advisable to mention those details in the property agreement.
3. Rent specifications:
The property agreement should clearly state the rent amount that needs to be paid by the tenant every month. Additionally, it should include the date by which rent should be paid, the mode of rent payment and the bank details of the landlord and the tenant.
4. Details about required Safety certificates:
The landlord should provide all the safety certificates done on various utilities in the house (e.g. gas safety certificate) before renting the property to the tenant. Going ahead with the tenancy agreement, it should clearly lay down the responsibilities about carrying out timely safety checks and any repair work around it.
5. Required notice period:
This is one of the crucial matters in the tenancy agreement. The landlord may put down certain conditions around the minimum stay a tenant should serve after renting a property. Failing to serve the minimum tenure may result in some penalties. Also, beyond minimum tenure, if a tenant aspires to leave the property then he may have to notify the landlord in advance. All these details around the tenancy break clause and minimum notice period should make their way in the agreement document.
6. Utility Bill Payment responsibility:
In the majority of the cases, the tenant is responsible to pay all the utility bills but in some cases, the landlord may want to bear the responsibility to pay the utility bills and may offer the tenant a rent amount inclusive of all the utility and council tax bills. The rent agreement should clearly mark the responsibilities around it to avoid any confusion.
7. Property maintenance responsibilities:
Property maintenance is an on-going thing and the responsibility to maintain the property needs to be clearly included in the property agreement document. The landlord may want to manage the property by himself/herself or may hire a professional letting agency to manage it. Either way, this needs to be included in the tenancy agreement document.
8. Pets related clause:
If landlords have any reservations around allowing pets in the house then that needs to be clearly mentioned in the rent agreement.
9. Pictures of all the inventories and current condition of the property:
The list of all the inventories in the property and the pictures of the property state before renting must be attached with the rent agreement. It is helpful in case of any dispute that arises when tenants leave the property at the end of the tenancy agreement.
10. Miscellaneous:
Certain miscellaneous things around garden maintenance responsibilities and clauses around smoking can be included at the behest of landlords. If the landlord is interested only in renting a sub-part of the house then it should be highlighted clearly in the agreement.
Making the tenancy agreement is advisable as well as beneficial for landlords and tenants in many ways. First and foremost it can be a legal document and it can come in handy to reduce any friction between landlord and tenant in case of a dispute. Landlords can refer to the above points to take a clue to draft the tenancy agreement on their own or they can take these points and consult the professional solicitors or letting agencies to get the agreement done which is an absolutely perfect and recommended thing to pursue.