Contract confusion
Question
My house contract finished three months ago and my landlord's agents forgot to renew it. If I leave now, do I have to give the four weeks' notice that was in my original contract and can they withhold my bond if I wish to leave earlier?
Answer
If you rent privately and your landlord lives elsewhere, you're likely to be an assured shorthold tenant. The following information is based on this. If this isn't the case you can seek further help from a local advice service.
A tenancy doesn't automatically end when the contract runs out. Instead it becomes a 'periodic' tenancy, rather than a 'fixed term' tenancy. This means it runs from month to month rather than for a specific period. Most of your rights and responsibilities remain the same, but the rules on ending the tenancy are different.
If you want to leave it's important you end your tenancy correctly. If you don't, you may owe rent after you move out. Now that your tenancy agreement has finished, any clause about notice no longer applies. Instead, you will need to give at least four weeks' notice, or notice equivalent to one rental period, if that is longer.
So if you pay rent weekly, or every four weeks, you must give four weeks' notice. If you pay every calendar month you must give a calendar month's notice. If you don't give notice correctly the landlord could withhold your bond to cover any rent due or take you to court to try to get their money back.
If you don't want to give the necessary notice, you could try negotiating with your landlord. They may be willing to let you end the tenancy early, for example, if you were able to find someone else to move in (your landlord can't claim two lots of rent for the same period). If your landlord agrees to end the tenancy early, try to get their agreement in writing. You will then have evidence if there's any dispute about the bond.
If you need further help, you could contact a your local Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) or Housing Aid Centre. An adviser may be able to help you negotiate with your landlord to end the tenancy early.
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Question answered by Shelter
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