Date of end of notice - Assured Shorthold Tenancy

littlemissmoney

Hi

I am about to sign an Assured Shorthold Tenancy for 12 months with a six month breakclause. After 6 months I am required to give 6 weeks notice. My LL is required to give me 2 months notice.

My question... does this notice period have to end the day before my rent is due? i.e. Does the LLs notice have to be two rental periods, not just 2 months? And would I have to give notice 2 weeks before my rent was due, to end 6 weeks later? It doesn't say that in my aggreement, but I'm sure I have read that on here before.

If the above is true, then can I only move out the day before my rent due date? Or if I wanted to move out say a week after my rent due date would I just have to give 7 weeks notice? If this is not in the tenancy aggreement can they enforce it?

I'm confused

Thanks

rosysparkle

Yes, your notice has to end on the day before the rent is due. If your tennacy commenced on the 28th of the month, the notice must end on 27th of a month. You can give more than the required notice, but the tenancy will end on a 27th. Six weeks notice is very unusual, it's usually one month for a tenant.

Yes, your landlord has to give you notice of two months to end on the 27th of the month.

If you want to leave at a different time in the month, you can leave earlier than the 27th and remain responsible for the rent and other outgoings of the tenancy until the end of the tenancy.

If you wanted to stay a week extra, your landlord may consent to this (and accept mesne profits instead of rent, at the same daily rate as the rent would be) but they don't have to, they can hold you to the tenancy dates.

littlemissmoney

rosysparkle wrote:

Six weeks notice is very unusual, it's usually one month for a tenant.

Thanks rosysparkle. LL was insisting on me giving 2 months notice and I only wanted to give one, so we eventually agreed on 6 weeks.

It does seem very odd that you can only leave on one day of each month :rolleyes:

Thanks

littlemissmoney

Rosysparkle, Does what you have said above about leaving on the day before the rent due date hold true even if there is no mention of this in my tenancy agreement?

littlemissmoney

littlemissmoney wrote:

I am about to sign an Assured Shorthold Tenancy for 12 months with a six month breakclause. After 6 months I am required to give 6 weeks notice. My LL is required to give me 2 months notice.

The above is what I thought I had agreed with the LA. However, I have just received the paperwork for me to sign and it says that after 6 months either myself or the landlord can terminate the agreement giving 6 weeks notice. I thought LLs had to give atleast 2 months notice by law? Please can somebody clarify this before I phone the letting agency tomorrow.

Thank you

thesaint

There is a website called landlordzone that have loads of information about this sort of thing.
Of course you can leave at anytime of the month you want, it doesn't have to be the day before your rent is due.

Ebany

I would suggest asking the agency to clarify, as I have not encountered this before, so it puzzles me every time I see it. Certainly in the last place I rented I moved in on the 20th of the month and moved out on the 17th, but as the agency this was through only took their rents on the 1st of the month this involved paying partial months rent at the start and end of the tenancy. I had to give one months notice, but this could end at any point (once the 6 month part had expired). Given I let the agency know as soon as I found a new flat that I would shortly be putting in my one months notice (I agreed that we would give our months notice on the old flat once all the checks were in and OK for the new one - as they would have been approached for a reference they would probably have got the idea soon enough anyway) I would have expected them to mention this if it was likely to cause a problem.

I have also had no mention of such a clause in my current tenancy agreement. Maybe this is a clause that is usually in there but isn't always followed?

chant1l

In law any agreement between LL and tenant of a residential property defaults to the standard terms of an assured shorthold tenancy which obliges the landlord to give two full months notice beginning the next rental period ( the 28th in your case) and the tenant one month....
He can write pretty much anything he wants on an agreement (6 weeks notices etc etc)- whether it is legally binding is another thing, however when you do finally move out and he stings you are you prepared to go to court over it?
Your rights are only as good as your determination to pursue them.

littlemissmoney

chant1l wrote:

Your rights are only as good as your determination to pursue them.

I'm very determined when it comes to my rights

littlemissmoney

littlemissmoney wrote:

I have just received the paperwork for me to sign and it says that after 6 months either myself or the landlord can terminate the agreement giving 6 weeks notice. I thought LLs had to give atleast 2 months notice by law? Please can somebody clarify this before I phone the letting agency tomorrow.

I have spoken to the LA and they don't seem to think there is a problem with the LL giving 6 weeks notice. I have looked at the Housing Act 1988 section 21 and I can only find where it says the LL must give 2 months notice on expiry of the AST. But I want to know about the notice required after a break clause. Is this in the Act anywhere or can a LL give any notice that is in the tenancy aggreement? Please help me

Link to Housing Act:

http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts1988/Ukpga_19880050_en_3.htm#mdiv21

thesaint

chant1l wrote:

In law any agreement between LL and tenant of a residential property defaults to the standard terms of an assured shorthold tenancy which obliges the landlord to give two full months notice beginning the next rental period ( the 28th in your case) and the tenant one month....
He can write pretty much anything he wants on an agreement (6 weeks notices etc etc)- whether it is legally binding is another thing, however when you do finally move out and he stings you are you prepared to go to court over it?
Your rights are only as good as your determination to pursue them.

Is this the answer you are looking for?