Council Tax and liability of the owner when the property is rented

Fabian

Hi all there,

Let's say I rent my flat and properly communicate this to the council so that they charge my tenant with council tax and not me.

Now, if my tenant doesn't pay the council tax and leave the house, will I become liable of paying it for the whole period my tenant did not pay it?

I know for example, that house owners are supposed to communicate providers (like electricity, gas, etc) the forwarding address of the tenant who left a house so that they can send the bill to the tenant's new address as - I was told - you cannot be held responsible of bills not addressed on your name.

Now, is all the above valid for council tax too?

Thanks for any reply.
Fab

olly300

If you rent your flat out you should have a written contract with the name of the tenant. You should also have other information such as their employer or if they are students, their university and address of a parent.

The tenant is legally obliged to tell the council they have rented the property and once they move out they have a legal obligation to inform the council they have moved and that you are the landlord.

If the tenant doesn't pay as long as you can prove that the property was rented out to someone you have no legal obligation to pay council tax during that time.

It is then up to the council to chase the former tenant for any unpaid council tax.

CIS

olly300 is spot on - providing the property in not an HMO for Council Tax purposes - the tenant will be liable for the Council Tax during their tenancy.

theartfullodger

Have a vague recollection that if contract is for less than 6months Landlord should pay

Fabian

CIS wrote: »

olly300 is spot on - providing the property in not an HMO for Council Tax purposes - the tenant will be liable for the Council Tax during their tenancy.

what does HMO stand for?

what properties might be HMO?

Thanks

Fabian

olly300 wrote: »

If you rent your flat out you should have a written contract with the name of the tenant. You should also have other information such as their employer or if they are students, their university and address of a parent.

The tenant is legally obliged to tell the council they have rented the property and once they move out they have a legal obligation to inform the council they have moved and that you are the landlord.

So it's the tenant not me which is obliged to complete a form when he/she moves in/out. Its up to me to ensure he/she does it.

In the contract I have, however, there is no mention of whatsoever employer.

CIS

Have a vague recollection that if contract is for less than 6months Landlord should pay

Not under Council Tax legislation.

what does HMO stand for?

House in Multiple Occupation - http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1992/551/regulation/2/made

So it's the tenant not me which is obliged to complete a form when he/she moves in/out. Its up to me to ensure he/she does it.

I would always ensure you advise the council as well - you'd be amazed at the number of cases I see where the tenant has come and gone without informing the council and the landlord is then left trying to retrospectively find tenancy agreements.

In the contract I have, however, there is no mention of whatsoever employer.

I see a lot of tenancy agreements and cant ever recall seeing one with employment details.

G_M

Fabian wrote: »

In the contract I have, however, there is no mention of whatsoever employer.

As a landlord, it is entirely YOUR responsibility to decide what should/should not be included in the contract!

Having said that, CIS is right, it is unusual for a contract to include the employer's details.

Any sensible landlord, however, will have obtained this information before granting the tenancy, as part of the tenant vetting process.

dgtazzman

From what I've seen, employment details are given to the agent for the sole purpose of confirming tenant's income, after that they go out the window.

G_M

Although as a LL I obtain this info myself rather than use an agent, on the few occassions I have used an agent, I make sure I get from them all the relevant info they get about the tenant (eg employer's references etc). I'm the LL. The tenant is my tenant. I want to know who they are.