If you’re a tenant or landlord, then it has been hard to avoid all of the recent coverage of the Tenant Fee Ban. Essentially, the new Act means that tenants will no longer be charged for extra services from June this year. Take a look at the key points below to make sure that you are up-to-date with the latest legislation, whether you’re a tenant or a landlord.
Headline changes:
- Landlords will only be able to hold up to 5 weeks rent as a tenancy deposit.
- The holding deposit, to ensure the tenant application, can be no more than one week’s rent.
- All other payments will be banned with the exception of contractual default penalties.
What can no longer be charged for:
- Charging for a guarantor form
- Credit checks
- Inventories
- Cleaning services
- Referencing
- Professional cleaning
- Having the property deflead as a condition of allowing pets in the property
- Admin charges
- Requirements to have specific insurance providers
- Gardening services
Two default fees are exempt from these changes and can still be charged for should the tenant break the Tenancy Agreement. These exceptions will have to be written in to the contract, however, in order for a landlord to be able to charge tenants, despite being also highlighted in the new legislation;
1)Late rent fees
Under the new Act, landlords will be able to charge a late rent fee for payments more than two weeks overdue. The fees can be charged at an additional 3% plus the Bank of England base rate at the time, but this must be charged on a pro-rata basis.
2)Lost keys
Once the new legislation comes in to the place, a landlord may only charge up to £5 for a replacement key, and they must provide a receipt.
To read more about The Tenant Fee Ban click here to see the legislation in full.
