What’s expected of a student tenant?

You (and all tenants in England and Wales) have to:

* Give honest and truthful statements during the process of applying for a house
* Pay your rent on time
* Respect and care for the landlord’s property (house, furniture and fittings)
* Reimburse the landlord for any damage (other than normal wear and tear) at the end of, or during, the tenancy
* Report any faults/repairs to the landlord as soon as you spot them
* Not use the house for anything other than as your home (e.g. not to run a business)
* Not keep pets, unless agreed by your landlord and in your tenancy agreement
* Not do anything in or near your house that could cause nuisance to your landlord or neighbours or damage their property
* Follow the terms of your tenancy agreement and look after your home in a ‘tenant-like manner’

What’s expected of a landlord?

Your home must be safe for you to live in and comply with current regulations – to include the 2004 Housing Act.

By statute your landlord needs to:

* Keep the structure and outside of the house (including drains, gutters and external pipes) in good repair
* Keep the installations in the dwelling house for the supply of water, gas and electricity and for sanitation in good repair and proper working order
* Keep the installations in the house for heating rooms and heating water in good repair and proper working order.
* And, when the tenancy is for a furnished home – ensure that furniture and furnishings meet current regulatory standards for fire safety

Whilst the requirements listed above are fairly typical and fall under common law every lease will have its own particular terms and conditions. If you are offered a lease and you have any concerns regarding the terms/terminology of the arrangement you should resist from signing the contract.

Contracts: the basics

It’s a good idea to brush up on one or two facts before you rent a house:

* Your tenancy agreement is a legally binding contract and both you as the tenant and the property owner as the landlord must adhere to it’s conditions
* As the tenant you have a right to ‘quiet enjoyment’ of your new home. This means that your landlord can’t just demand access to your home whenever s/he feels like it (except in an emergency).
* Your contract is likely to be an Assured Shorthold Tenancy (see below).
* Assured Shorthold Tenancies don’t have to be on paper but it’s very difficult to follow up problems you may have with a verbal agreement.

Fixed-Term Assured Shorthold Tenancy

These are tenancies that usually start with a fixed term (a defined period of time), agreed by you and your landlord (e.g. 10 or 12 months). During this fixed term, you and your landlord are bound by this contract. This means you are bound to pay the rent for the whole of the fixed term and your landlord is bound to allow you to live exclusively in the house and to have ‘quiet enjoyment’.

In the private rented sector you are almost certainly going to be offered an Assured Shorthold Tenancy – even if the agreement does not state that it is an AST it still will be – unless the agreement says that it is an Assured Tenancy or a License to Occupy. A license is generally what you be offered by the University on campus.