Landlords - Legal aspects to consider before letting your property
Starting as a landlord is a daunting task. There is a bewildering amount of legislation and best practices to keep up with. While you are busy making sure things are going nicely, it’s easy to overlook things coming your way and keeping up to speed with the latest changes in landlord legislation.
We know that keeping up with so many things can be a struggle, so here we are to make things easier for you please see our guide on the landlord legislation changes to keep an eye on and avoid the nasty surprises so as to to stay one step ahead of the game.
Landlord's Gas safety certificate
When renting out a property with gas it is a legal requirement to ensure that a valid and up to date Gas safety certificate is in place and has been issued by a Gas Safe registered technician. This document has a shelf life of 12 months and will need to be updated annually.
Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR)
This report is one of the newest requirements for a landlord. An electrician will need to be instructed to visit your property and supply and EICR with a "satisfactory" rating. If the result is below the required standard, you (the landlord) will be required to action the recommended works to achieve the required standard. Our advice is to organise this well in advance.
Tenant fees bill
This is the new legislation that aims to make renting fairer for tenants and was effective from 1st June 2019. The law prevents landlords and letting agents from charging a fee for services such as tenant referencing and inventories, contract changes, termination, renewal fees and check-out fees. However, Landlords may also be able to make deductions if there is a breach of the tenancy agreement.
Compulsory client money protection schemes (CMPS)
All letting agents need to register under a client money protection scheme. Whether it is tenancy deposit, rent, or funds to cover property maintenance, this scheme gives landlords an added protection on the rental income. Letting agents who don’t have CMPS in place will face a penalty of up to £30,000 for non-compliance.
Landlord’s minimum energy efficiency standard (MEES)
This standard means that all the newly rented homes and those with renewed tenancies must have an energy performance certificate (EPC) rating of E or above. However, from 1st April 2020, this rule is also extended to existing tenancies. This means that you can no longer rent out homes with an EPC rating of F or G and face a fine of £5000 if you continue to do so.
With that in mind, you as a landlord should act now to ensure your property is compliant.
These are just some of the new legislation to add to obligatory electrical safety checks, homes act and the minimum space requirements for bedroom sizes and join redress schemes.
Finding time to stay compliant with the latest changes to landlord legislation can be tricky.
Check out our complete Guide to Letting HERE.