Notice on fixed term tenancy agreement

Samjh87

Hi,
I'm currently renting a property as a private tenant on a fixed term contract which is due to come to an end on the 1st June. I was awaiting for new documents to come into the estate agents before going in to sign a new tenancy agreement.
In the meantime I have been offered a house with a housing association which best suits our needs and also gets me away from our current abusive neighbours with who I have an ongoing police dispute with. I am hopefully viewing the housing association property today but I would like to know where I stand with notice on my current tenancy.
As my fixed term period comes to an end on 1st June do I need to give any notice? I am going to check my contract when I go home on lunch although I suspect that it would state the usual 1 months written notice. My landlords are lovely so I would like to keep on good terms but can not afford to pay rent on both properties for a month without getting in to debt but really want to move from my neighbours as I have a 5 year old daughter.

Any advice would be much appreciated! Thanks in advance.

Slithery

If you are leaving at the end of a fixed term then you don't need to give any notice at all - although letting the LL know ASAP would obviously keep you on better terms

Read...
Ending/renewing an AST

You may want to check your dates carefully though, I have a suspicion that your current tenancy may actually end on the 31st May and handing back the keys any later than midnight would leave you liable for at least one months more rent.

Comms69

Samjh87 wrote: »

Hi,
I'm currently renting a property as a private tenant on a fixed term contract which is due to come to an end on the 1st June. I was awaiting for new documents to come into the estate agents before going in to sign a new tenancy agreement.
In the meantime I have been offered a house with a housing association which best suits our needs and also gets me away from our current abusive neighbours with who I have an ongoing police dispute with. I am hopefully viewing the housing association property today but I would like to know where I stand with notice on my current tenancy.
As my fixed term period comes to an end on 1st June do I need to give any notice? I am going to check my contract when I go home on lunch although I suspect that it would state the usual 1 months written notice. My landlords are lovely so I would like to keep on good terms but can not afford to pay rent on both properties for a month without getting in to debt but really want to move from my neighbours as I have a 5 year old daughter.

Any advice would be much appreciated! Thanks in advance.

If you leave by, or on, June 1st then no notice is required. If you leave afterwards you will be able to leave on August 1st in all likelihood. (standard SPT) or whatever notice is in your contract (Contractual periodic tenancy)

Samjh87

Thank you Slithery. Is that even if my contract states that a month notice is necessary? Does the end of the fixed term agreement supersede this?

And yes, I think you are correct about the dates!

Comms69

Samjh87 wrote: »

Thank you Slithery. Is that even if my contract states that a month notice is necessary? Does the end of the fixed term agreement supersede this?

And yes, I think you are correct about the dates!

Yes. No matter what it says, if you leave on the date that it expires the contract is concluded. No terms can thereafter be enforced.

Samjh87

Also, I read the below on the Shelter.org website which has confused me:

"Contractual periodic tenancy arising at the end of fixed term

Where the tenancy agreement contains a clause providing that a periodic tenancy will arise immediately on expiry of the fixed term, a contractual periodic tenancy that arises will be a continuation of the original tenancy. In this circumstance, the tenant cannot end the tenancy by leaving on the last day of the fixed-term agreement. To end the tenancy, the tenant must serve a valid notice to quit after the date on which the fixed term ends."

Do I need to check that this clause isn't in my contract before presuming I can leave on the last day of my fixed term agreement?

Slithery

Samjh87 wrote: »

Does the end of the fixed term agreement supersede this?

Yes. Nothing written in a tenancy contract can override the legal statutes.

Unless it was a poorly written tenancy agreement I imagine that the '1 months notice' related to some other clause such as a break clause or a CPT, although I can't read it from here

Comms69

Samjh87 wrote: »

Also, I read the below on the Shelter.org website which has confused me:

"Contractual periodic tenancy arising at the end of fixed term

Where the tenancy agreement contains a clause providing that a periodic tenancy will arise immediately on expiry of the fixed term, a contractual periodic tenancy that arises will be a continuation of the original tenancy. In this circumstance, the tenant cannot end the tenancy by leaving on the last day of the fixed-term agreement. To end the tenancy, the tenant must serve a valid notice to quit after the date on which the fixed term ends."

Do I need to check that this clause isn't in my contract before presuming I can leave on the last day of my fixed term agreement?

A contractual periodic tenancy begins AFTER the fixed term.

Samjh87

Thank you both so much for your replies and advice! I may have a busy few days ahead!!