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A private landlord is someone (or a company) who rents out residential properties. This leaflet explains your rights and responsibilities of being a landlord but is only a general guide to the law relating to assured tenancies. If you are not sure about your own position, you should speak to a solicitor or Citizens Advice. Different laws apply to regulated tenancies and short assured tenancies.
It is better to appoint a professionally qualified letting agent to manage your property. They will market your property and identify a tenant. If you need more information, contact a solicitor or Moray Solicitors’ Property Centre.
Your Rights and Responsibilities
Part II of the Housing (Scotland) Act 1988 introduced a new form of tenancy, the assured tenancy, which became the usual form of tenancy provided by a private landlord.
You must give your tenant a legally-binding tenancy agreement setting out the terms of the assured or short assured tenancy, which should include the following.
As the landlord, you have a responsibility to keep the following in good repair and working order.
You must carry out a gas installation check before a tenant moves into your property and then checks each year, including of any electrical appliances. You should give your tenant a copy of the gas safety certificate issued by the CORGI-registered installer. Appliances which burn any fossil fuel such as gas, coal or oil can produce carbon monoxide if they have not been fitted properly or serviced regularly. As the landlord, you have a legal duty to make sure that the premises and the accommodation are safe.
If you are providing furnished accommodation, you must make sure that all upholstered furniture meets the Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988 as amended by the Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) (Amendment) Regulations 1989 and 1993. You can get a copy of this from your local library or on the internet. These regulations set new levels for fire resistance for domestic upholstered furniture.
There is no restriction on the rent you can negotiate with your tenant at the beginning of the tenancy. However, it should be fair and reasonable. As the landlord, you should consider the market and what the rent level should cover. You may also have to take account of restrictions on rent levels in relation to Rent Allowance.
A tenant on low income or benefits may be entitled to Rent Allowance to help cover the cost of the rent. We always pay Rent Allowance every four weeks for the four weeks just passed. You can find out the maximum amount of Rent Allowance a tenant is entitled to before the tenancy starts by getting a ‘pre-tenancy determination’. Your tenant has to apply for this and will let you know the likely amount of rent which Rent Allowance will cover. If the rent is too high, we may restrict the amount of Rent Allowance we will pay. For more information, contact your local Revenues Office.
If the property is not classed as a ‘house in multiple occupation’, your tenant will more than likely be legally responsible for paying Council Tax. In certain circumstances, you can include the Council Tax rate with your charge for rent.
Licensing Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMO)
Houses in multiple occupation are basically shared accommodation including flats, bedsits, lodgings, bed-and-breakfast accommodation and other shared accommodation such as student residences and hostels. Accommodation within a building, which although otherwise separate, shares toilets, personal washing facilities or cooking facilities is taken to form part of a single house. To be classified as a licensable HMO, the accommodation must be the only or main home of a set number of people who are from more than two households. If you provide accommodation just for holidaymakers, you will not be covered by this legislation.
If you are considering renting shared housing with more than one other household, you must get a licence for an HMO.
As the landlord, you should make sure that your property meets the ‘tolerable standard’ as defined in the Housing (Scotland) Act 1987. If you do not have the following standard facilities and the property is not an HMO, you might be eligible for a grant.
You are a resident landlord if you and your tenant both live in the same property and it is your only or main home. There must also be a direct access such as a doorway, between your part of the house and the tenant’s. If you want the tenant to leave the property, you must give them a written Notice to Quit, which explains the tenant’s rights. You must give the tenant at least four weeks’ notice of the time you want the tenancy to end. If the Notice to Quit eventually runs out, you will need a court order before you can evict the tenant. The court will postpone the order, normally for a few weeks, until the tenant can find other accommodation. You should first get advice from a solicitor or Citizens Advice.
If you want to end the tenancy, you must first give the tenant a Notice to Quit. A Notice to Quit must be in writing and has the effect of bringing the contractual tenancy between you and the tenant to an end on a particular date. It cannot take effect before this date known as the ‘expiry date’. The period of notice will depend on what basis you let your property. If you let the property by the week, fortnight or month, you should give at least four weeks’ notice. I f you let the tenancy by the quarter (for three-month periods), you must give at least 31 days. If the tenancy is a yearly tenancy, you must give at least 40 days. You should speak to a solicitor before you serve a Notice to Quit as it must contain certain information for it to be valid. Your tenant does not have to leave the property just because you have served a Notice to Quit. You must also serve a Notice of Proceedings on the tenant and you must do this at the same time as a Notice to Quit. Again, you should speak to a solicitor before serving a Notice of Proceedings. If the tenant fails to leave the property, you must then apply to the Sheriff Court to get a court order to recover possession. This can be enforced if you need to evict the tenant.