Published: 14/02/2018
If you want to give notice to your Landlord to end your tenancy agreement you must do so in a legal manner. If you don’t you could find yourself paying rent even though you don’t live in the property anymore.
The first thing you must do is check what type of tenancy agreement you have. There are two types. A fixed term tenancy which means you have a date when the tenancy ends and a periodic tenancy which continues a weekly or monthly basis.
If you have a fixed term tenancy you have agreed to pay the rent until the date the agreement ends. This means you can only end the tenancy by prior agreement with the landlord or by adhering to the conditions contained in a break clause. Some tenancy agreements have break clauses, but some don’t. The conditions of a break clause could be, for example, permission to end the tenancy after a period of six months, with one month’s notice providing you are not in rent arrears.
If there is no break clause in your tenancy agreement, then you must ask your landlord if it is possible for you to end the tenancy. If the landlord refuses your request, you must either stay put in the property or continue to pay the rent until the agreement officially ends.
If you have a periodic tenancy, then you don’t need a break clause in your agreement. All you need to do is give the required amount of notice. This will either be 4 weeks or a month, depending on whether you pay your rent weekly or monthly.
A fixed tenancy can be converted into a periodic tenancy. This happens when the fixed tenancy period has expired, and a new tenancy has not been signed. If you carry on living at the premises and paying rent on a monthly or weekly basis your tenancy will have changed from a fixed tenancy to a periodic tenancy.
When you give notice, it should be in writing to your landlord with a copy to your letting agent if you have one. You should invite the landlord or a staff member of the letting agents to come to the property to inspect it, take the key and return your deposit if you are entitled to it.
If your deposit is held with a tenancy deposit scheme and there is a dispute about its return you can contact the scheme and the matter will be passed on to an independent adjudicator who will investigate the matter, issue a report and pay out the money held with the scheme to either yourself or your landlord.