Whether you are a tenant or a landlord, you may from time to time have problems or disagreements about the property or the rent. This site explains legal rights and responsibilities for both tenants and for private landlords. The law for tenants and landlords is complicated, and your rights will depend on the type of tenancy agreement there is.

This site is divided into sections, according to different types of landlord:-

• Private tenant or a landlord.
• Council tenant.
• Housing association tenant .

.: Private Tenancies.

Here are some of the explanations of the law, and how to deal with particular problems that can arise for tenants and landlords. First, you must establish what sort of tenancy agreement you are dealing with. Most people have one of three types:-

• A an assured shorthold tenancy.
• Aan assured tenancy; or
• A regulated (or protected) tenancy.

The type of tenancy you have depends to a large degree on when it was taken out. If the tenancy started on or after 28 February 1997, it is an assured shorthold tenancy, unless the landlord has said in writing that it is an assured tenancy. The tenancy may start either with a fixed period or as a periodic' tenancy which runs from week to week or from month to month (depending on when rent is paid).

Either way, the tenant has the right to stay for at least six months. If the tenancy started between 15 January 1989 and 27 February 1997, it will be an assured shorthold tenancy if the landlord made this clear on a special legal form at the beginning. Otherwise it will be an assured tenancy. The tenancy must have had an initial fixed term of at least six months.

Most private tenancies which started before 15 January 1989 are regulated (or protected) tenancies. This type of tenancy has the most protection against rent increases or eviction. If you are a tenant and you are unsure what type of tenancy you have, check your tenancy agreement. If you don't have one, ask your landlord for a copy of it.

.: Tenants and licensees.

Some people who rent from a private landlord are technically called 'licensees,. They have fewer rights than tenants. Licensees are usually people who don't have 'exclusive occupation', for example, lodgers whose landlord (or someone working for them) comes into their room on a more or less daily basis to clean. People are also licensees if they share with other people but their name isn't on the tenancy agreement.

Other people who have very limited protection include:-

• Anyone who lives in the accommodation as part of their job (a 'service occupier'); and
• Anyone who doesn't pay for the accommodation.

.: If the tenant wants to end the tenancy.

If a tenant on a periodic tenancy wants to leave, they can do so by giving the landlord notice, usually four weeks. If a fixed-term tenancy has not finished, the Landlord can insist that the tenant pays rent until the end of the fixed term. Some fixed tenancies have a break clause which allows a tenant to leave before the fixed term expires.

If there is a joint tenancy, and one tenant wants to leave, the legal situation can be complicated, and the remaining tenants should get advice. If the landlord wants to end the tenancy In most cases a landlord must serve notice if they want to end a tenancy, and for the tenants to leave. If the tenant does not leave by the end of the notice period, the landlord can start 'possession proceedings'. The tenant does not have to leave at the end of the notice period, but they may have to pay the landlord's costs of going to court if they don't. If the court awards an 'outright possession' order, and the tenant still does not leave, the landlord can ask the court to call in bailiffs to evict them.

If the landlord wants possession because the tenant has not paid their rent, the court may, in some cases, grant:-

• 'A suspended order', which allows the tenant to stay in their home as long as they pay off a certain amount each month or week.
• An 'adjournment', where the hearing is put off, as long as the tenant agrees to pay a certain amount.

.: Other private renting arrangements.

For other types of tenancy (often where the landlord lives with the tenant) the landlord can charge any rent they wish. Unless there is a written agreement saying how and when rent.