When you rent out a property, a landlord tenant contract must been drawn up. This contract protects both yourself and your tenant. The contract must be legally binding. If you sign a private contract it will be no use if disputes arise in the long term. The best way to ensure that the contract you draw up covers everything and is legal is to use the services of a residential or commercial property management team.
Landlord Tenant Contract : Clauses to Include
When you use the services of a professional to draw up your contract, you can discuss what to include in the contract. You will have the opportunity to read over all the clauses in the contract and check everything is OK. Although some things by law must be stipulated in the contract such as the rent amount, date and method of payment and length of contract, there are some that you can choose.
On your landlord tenant agreement the location of the property must be included as well as the full names of the landlord and tenant. You will be required to include what the property comprises of. An additional inventory of furnishing and fittings can be added if you are renting a furnished property.
The amount of rent and the due date must be clearly stated. The preferred method for payment must also be included. The norm is for the rent to be paid directly to the bank account of the landlord before the 5th working day of each month. If you are using a property manager then the rent will be paid to them and then you will be paid from them as opposed to directly from the tenant.
Landlord Contract Agreement : Repairs
One important area of your tenant agreement is the clause stating who is responsible for repairs. This needs to be agreed between you and your tenant and signed by both parties. Generally speaking small repairs such as changing lights bulbs or unblocking the kitchen sink should be the responsibility of the tenant, but it is possible to add a clause that states that all repairs are the responsibility of the landlord.
Disputes often arise over maintenance and repairs. There is nothing worse than visiting a property with a blocked drain to discover that the tenants have been trying to flush nappies down the toilet! This type of dispute can be very frustrating! To protect yourself from this type of problem, use a property maintenance team. It can be hard to prove who is at fault when problems occur. A fire can be seen as the fault of the landlord if the fire alarms have not been inspected in the year leading up to the fire.
What is clearly the tenant’s fault often ends up being the landlords fault, as tenants’ rights in the UK are often favoured over those of the owner. When a tenant hasn’t paid rent for months, why should the owner then have to pay money to evict them? Do not let this put you off becoming a landlord however. When you use an agent for the purpose, everything will be taken care of for you, including evicting tenants if the worst really does come to the worst!