Tenancy advice please

[for_heaven's_Saint]

Hi, looking for some advice from out forum experts please!

 

My partner rents a privately owned flat in London with 2 others. They're just about to sign another year tenancy contract.

 

In September, I'm hoping to move up to London. To make things easier when I move, I'd like to move in with her, at least while I settle into a new job.

 

My 2 questions are:

 

1. Do we have to declare that I am living there. (They're all double rooms so presumably designed for partners and is a big flat that could house a large family).

 

2. If we do declare I am there, is there a law to prevent the landlord raising the rent? I'd obviously pay council tax. The current rent is a fix amount that the 3 tenants split between them.

 

Thanks in advance.

[saint si]

1. Yes... ethically at least, but probably legally too.

 

2. No... I would expect a new tenancy agreement to be required. And even if the landlord did keep the total rent the same, you may also find the other 2 tenants may not be too happy with suddenly sharing with 3 other people instead of 2 others.

[Saint137]

Depends on the terms of the tenancy agreement, some have clauses about co-habitees some don't. If you're not paying rent then you can't form a tenancy agreement. But bear in mind virtually all standard TA's will have a clause about sub-letting (which would be what your partner would be doing if you informally split her portion of the rent). Council tax has nothing to do with the landlord or the TA.

From memory when I was renting I remember TAs which said stuff along the lines of if you had someone staying at the property regularly for more than 3 nights a week you had to tell the landlord. In practice I would guess few tenants will actually bother telling their landlords, and landlords won't bother checking.

[Saint137]

Also, if they've just signed a new TA and its an Assured Shorthold Tenancy it can't be varied in the first 6 months unless all parties agree. If its a periodic tenancy then they run on a rent period to rent period basis (i.e. monthly if rent is paid monthly)

[for_heaven's_Saint]

Cheers guys, more or less what I thought.