Information pages for landlords

In England & Wales letting a property to another person creates a legal relationship between the landlord and the tenant. However informal you intend the agreement to be. Specific housing legislation defines both your rights and responsibilities, and those of your tenant.

The main reason for employing a letting and management agent is time and effort. Many people just do not have the time to organise repairs, deal with minor queries, or even just do not want the “hassle” . We love it, and can deal with all aspects of the letting process, from finding & vetting tenants, rent collection and management to dealing with HMO ( Houses in Multiple Occupation ) compliance.

Landlords Responsibilities

Common Law

There is a limited range of Common Law falling on Landlords, At Common Law a Landlord is expected to keep the property fit for human habitation at the start of the tenancy. Also to keep Common parts of a Property in repair, this would apply to stairwells in blocks of flats, or common areas in shared accommodation

The Landlord & Tenant Act 1985 , places a responsibility on the landlord to keep the property in good repair.

Section 11 of the L & T 1985 makes provisions and obligations for a Landlord, where leases (tenancies) are less than seven years to:

Keep the Structure of the Property and exterior in repair, and;

Keep in repair and proper working order the installations for the supply of water, gas and electricity space heating and water heating

Landlord cannot contract out of these obligations, so if there is a term in a tenancy to do so, it would be invalid

Section 11 of the Landlord & Tenant Act 1985

The main responsibilities under Section 11 requires the landlord to

Keep the Structure of the Property and exterior in repair

This will include, gutters, pipes, drains (but not if the tenant or occupier causes the blockage or damage), the roof, external walls and foundations

the supply of water, gas and electricity

This will include, basins, sinks, baths toilets and any other sanitaryware

space heating and water heating

Keeping is good working order and proper repair

A Landlord can repair the defect, however, so long as it serves the purpose the repair does not have to be pretty. BUT, having said that, a landlord should look to the future, so when thinking of selling, any “rough work” would detract from the selling price of the property

For further information on our services please visit the various pages or complete the enquiry form and we shall get back to you as we are able

Many landlords are renting their property for the first time and are unsure on how to present a property for letting.

Have a look at our specific page on presenting a property to let.

Give us call, we can assit you in most aspects of residential letting and management

You can download our

Landlord_Information_Guide.pdf (856.9 KiB, 130 hits)