When you’re leasing a shared residence it can be a challenge to determine the details. Who is responsible for who and accountable for what? The more people are engaged, the greater the number of concerns that are asked. A very crucial concerns is, should all tenants be included in the tenancy contract?
Maybe you’re a tenant considering moving into a home with your partner in the near future. What are the rules for adding a new person in a tenancy contract? Perhaps you’ve found a suitable tenant for your house however, their housemates at university have a bit less reliability in their response to messages — can you add them as only a tenant?
If you’re a tenant, or a landlord with a question be assured that you’ll discover everything you need to be aware of and more in the following:
What are the tenancy agreement terms when you rent with other tenants?
The requirement for all tenants to sign a UK tenancy agreement or not is dependent on the kind of tenancy agreement you’re talking about. The first thing to be aware of is there exist three standard forms of tenancy that you can rent to the other tenants:
A joint tenancy that has one contract for tenancy that tenants have to sign
Tenancies that are solely tenancy in which each tenant is the sole possession of a particular room (a bedroom, typically) and also signs an arrangement with landlord
A sole tenancy in which one tenant is the landlord of the residence and signs their own contract in conjunction with “head” tenant to let the rooms
In joint tenancies each tenant has the same rights and agrees to the same conditions and terms that is why every tenant has to be signed on the same tenancy contract. This is due to all tenants having to agree to share the responsibility of the property. If, for instance, one tenant fails to pay their rent at the end of the month it is likely that the remaining tenants are likely to have to take care of their portion.
Sold tenancies are much simpler since tenants do not have to depend on the person they live with to provide them with everything. Each tenant must make their own tenancy agreements with their landlord, and each tenant is responsible to pay their rent.
A sole tenancy in which one tenant is resident landlord is a bit different. In this scenario residents are the sole tenant that is required to sign a lease together with the landlord who is also known as the “head landlord”. They rent out other rooms, create their own lease agreements with sub-tenants and are responsible for collecting rent and paying it to the head landlord.
Incorporating a new tenant into an existing lease
As circumstances change and time goes by there are many reasons to consider the possibility of adding a new tenant to the existing tenancy agreement. Perhaps your favorite acquaintance is stuck in a rough situation and requires a place to stay, or perhaps your spouse’s overnight visits have become increasingly frequent. Whatever the reason it’s important to think about more other than a person who is drinking milk or using your shampoo to the max.
The majority of tenancy agreements stipulate that guests can’t stay for more than 14 days during any six-week timeframe. After that, they’re considered a tenant and be required to inform your landlord that you’re aware. While there’s no way to guarantee your landlord will allow an applicant but it’s always best to keep your word and stay clear of problems. But more about that in the next.
Who is on the lease?
Tenancy agreements are created to protect both tenants and landlords and is a good idea to make sure that all the people who are required are protected. For instance, if your landlord demands that you quit, there’s not much that you can do, if you weren’t part of the tenancy agreement in the first place to start with. A tenancy agreement guarantees the fair treatment of everyone who are involved.
Tenancy agreements also help landlords track who lives in their home and failing to record this correctly could put them in deep waters. For instance there are strict regulations concerning the issue of overcrowding in a rental an HMO (a property that is shared by at least three persons who aren’t part of a household). The addition of a tenant that the landlord isn’t recording or was unaware of and could be subject to an enormous penalty.
Does my partner need to sign the lease agreement?
In essence your landlord will require to know whether you’ll live with someone else at their residence. It all depends on the specifics of the lease agreement. For instance, you may be joint tenants in an agreement. You could also be sole tenants who have the terms of their own agreements or, sometimes, landlords may accept one sole tenant in the agreement , who is responsible to the tenant who is not. This is especially likely when you’re married.
In any event it’s recommended to communicate with your landlord prior to moving in or adding the tenant’s partner to an agreement. This is the most effective way to ensure you’re both safe and, perhaps most important is that your landlord is in agreement to your partner’s move anyhow.
Some final suggestions…
If you’re thinking of the possibility of adding a new roommate to your home You might be asking what the cost of a landlord per-person? It’s yes. Your rent might rise with every new tenant because of the increased wear and tear to the property, as well as the potential for damage. The landlord may also charge an administrative cost for the lease to be altered.
Menu