How to Rent Guide (Quick Read)

Most landlords will be familiar with the herculean amount of paperwork that is required when setting up a new tenancy. Much of this stems from what we call the prescribed requirements which were introduced in the Deregulation Act 2015.

These include things like the Energy Performance Certificate, Deposit Scheme Information and the sometimes overlooked How to Rent Guide.

This is a Government document which as the title suggests, tells your prospective tenants what to expect when they rent a property as well as providing general advice. This guide is updated periodically and it is important that the correct one is served. It is not enough just to send a link to the website, you need to provide a PDF version if sending by email, or as a printed copy if by post.

If you have a tenancy that becomes statutory periodic at the end of the fixed term, or you are doing a renewal tenancy, then you must reserve the Guide if it has changed since you first served it. That is why it is important you check the latest version when you reach that point. The current one was issued in December 2020.

Just to add a little bit of confusion to the mix, a new easy to read How to Rent Guide was published last week. However, this is a case of it is what it says on the tin – easy to read. It does not replace the December 2020 version and can be given to a tenant as well as, but not instead of. This is because the easy read guide has a different name and is not the name listed in the regulations.

You can see the How to Rent Guide and the How To Rent:Easy read guide here

Please note the date this article was published as the law may have changed since it was posted. You should always seek independent legal advice if you are intending to rely on any of the contents.