Legislate takes the hassle out of creating HMO tenancy agreements with a smooth end-to-end contracting experience your HMO tenants will love.
An assured shorthold tenancy agreement (also known as an AST) allows a landlord to let a property to a tenant. The term of an assured shorthold tenancy agreement is usually 6 or 12 months and will usually convert to a rolling periodic tenancy at the end of the initial term.
A house in multiple occupation (HMO) is a property rented out by 3 or more people forming more than one household. Depending on the location of the property, a landlord might need a HMO licence. A HMO tenancy agreement is an agreement between the landlord and a tenant and will grant exclusive possession to a room in the shared house as well as access to shared facilities such as a kitchen, communal areas and a bathroom. Landlords who rent out a HMO have additonal responsibilities which need to be clearly spelled out in the assured shorthold tenancy agreement.
A tenancy agreement must state if the landlord has a superior landlord or not. This is a person or company the landlord has a superior lease with. The landlord must also have the permission from the superior landlord to let the property to a tenant in the first place.
A landlord of a HMO property has additional responsibilities including maintaining the cleanliness and repair of the communal areas and facilities, ensuring the property is not overcrowded, and displaying their or their agent's contact information to the tenant. A HMO licence also imposes a minimum room floor area requirements based on the age and number of people living in the room. Because of these constraints, it is possible that a landlord might not permit a pet in a HMO tenancy if it might overcrowd the property or if there is not enough space.
Legislate's assured shorthold tenancy agreement offers the appropriate wording for confirming the presence of a superior landlord or not. This provides complete transparency to the tenant that the landlord has the right to let them the property.