Tenant Application Guide

Application Forms

Application forms need to be completed by each person aged 18 or over who will be occupying the property and each applicant will receive a link to complete and submit their application through our online portal.

We require the following fields to be completed in your application before we can put your application forward to the Landlord:

• Personal Information

• Residential Status

• Contact Details

• Next of Kin Detail (ideally someone not due to be living with you)

• Address Details

• Student Details (if applicable)

• Employment Details (if applicable)

• Housing Benefit Status (if applicable)

• Notes from Applicant (The property is to let as seen, therefore if you wish to stipulate any conditions for the tenancy please make these clear in this section of the form.)

• Further Reference & Guarantor (if applicable - the Further Reference would be your current Landlord or Letting Agent)

• Additional Information (Pets, if applicable)

The property is to let as seen. If you have any specific requests that your application is subject to, such as cleaning/redecorating requests or specific tenancy durations etc., you will need to stipulate these in the notes section of the application form in order for these to be considered.

Right to Rent Checks

Along with your application you will need to provide the agent with your right to rent documents.

What is Right to Rent?

Right to Rent requires lettings agents in England to check that all tenants who occupy their properties have legal status to live in the UK. This means that before you can rent a home in England, a letting agent must undertake ID checks prior to letting out the property.

When carrying out a Right to Rent check, your letting agent must carry out a check on all prospective tenants over the age of 18, even if they are not named on the tenancy. This includes checking an original form of ID (from a list of acceptable identification documents) in the presence of the prospective tenant or viewing a tenant’s Right to Rent online via the Home Office ‘share code’ system.

Application Process

Once an application has been submitted this does not guarantee you the property and we do not work on a first come first served basis. Each application that is submitted will be put forward to the Landlord for them to make an informed decision as to which application they would like to proceed with.

Once the Landlord has made a decision to proceed with your application, all parties will be issued with a subject to contract letter outlining the terms for the proposed tenancy. This is an important piece of documentation as it will detail any agreed additional conditions such as pets, decorating, Guarantors etc. We will also contact you to request a Holding Deposit equivalent to one weeks’ rent to secure the property whilst referencing is carried out.

Information regarding holding deposits:

We will agree with all parties in writing the deadline for agreement based on a provisional start date for the tenancy. Subject to satisfactory checks, the balance of the Holding Deposit will be applied to the first months’ rent payable at the commencement of the tenancy.

Instances where we will retain the Holding Deposit:

• Tenant provides false or misleading information which the Landlord can reasonably consider when deciding to let a property – this can include a tenant’s behaviour in providing false or misleading information

• Tenant fails a Right to Rent check

• Tenant withdraws from a property (unless a landlord or agent imposed a requirement that breached the ban or acted in such a way to the Tenant or Relevant Person that it would be unreasonable to expect a Tenant to enter into a tenancy agreement with them)

• Tenant fails to take all reasonable steps to enter into a tenancy agreement and the Landlord or Agent takes all reasonable steps to do so (unless a landlord or agent imposes a requirement that breaches the ban or acts in such a way to the Tenant or Relevant Person that it would be unreasonable to expect a tenant to enter into a tenancy agreement with them).

Ground 1 Notice of Housing Act 1988

What is notice of Ground 1 of the Housing Act?

A Ground 1 notice is to notify the Tenant that the Landlord has at some time before the beginning of the proposed tenancy occupied the property as his only or principal residence OR may in due course require the dwelling house as his or his spouse’s principal home and that in either event possession of the property may be recovered on this ground. If this applies to the property you will be issued with the notice prior to the start of the tenancy.

Ground 2 Notice of Housing Act 1988

What is notice of Ground 2 of the Housing Act?

A Ground 2 notice is to notify the Tenant before a tenancy is granted that the rented property is subject to a mortgage and that the mortgage company may seek possession in the future. If this applies to the property you will be issued with the notice prior to the start of the tenancy.

Referencing

You will be issued with links from a third party referencing company to complete a form to enable references to be carried out, including but not limited to, income checks, credit reference and renting history. Whether or not a tenancy will be granted will be based on the outcome of the checks.

In all cases it can be quicker for the referencing company to complete your references if you were to opt into Open Banking.

What is Open Banking?

Open Banking allows you to manage the financial data your bank or building society generates from your bank account. You can use Open Banking to authorise your bank to securely share your financial history with referencing companies

What is does it entail?

Using Open Banking requires you to select your income and outgoing rental payments, connecting you with your bank securely and allowing you to select transactions to illustrate your income and rental payments.

Is Open Banking secure?

Yes, Open Banking is secure.

Open Banking is supported by the CMA (Competitions and Markets Authority) and any provider of Open Banking is required to be authorised by the FCA (Financial Conduct Authority).

How will Open Banking help completing your reference?

By using Open Banking, you can illustrate your income and rental payments to an agent/landlord in seconds. As opposed to ‘traditional referencing’ which can take days, this means the referencing process is completed in minutes, meaning you can move into your dream rental property quicker!

Once references have been approved and your application has been accepted you will be issued with the Tenancy Agreement which will need to be signed by all tenants, and guarantors where applicable, in advance of the tenancy start date. The contract will then be executed by the Agent or Landlord on the tenancy start date. You will also be issued with a Move In Statement outlining all outstanding balances payable before the start of the tenancy in cleared funds, which will include the following:

• Security deposit

• First months’ rent minus the balance of the holding deposit already paid.

The Agent will arrange for the Check-In appointment with you at the property on the tenancy start date where the keys will be handed over and they will run through any guidance relating to the property or its contents.

In the event that the Landlord is personally managing the ongoing tenancy you will be advised of the Landlord’s direct contact details, otherwise the Agent will be your point of contact throught the duration of the tenancy.

Tenant Fees

Tenancy Amendments

£50 including VAT

An administration charge will be payable in advance for any amendments to the tenancy when requested by the Tenant, for example requesting a change of tenants or addendums to the agreement to allow for pets in the property.

All changes must be agreed by all parties, subject to the Landlords agreement.

Early Termination

Cost to be confirmed by your local agent on a case by case basis.

In the event the Tenant wishes to terminate the tenancy before the end of the Fixed Element consent will need to be granted by the Landlord/Agent subject to the following:

• The Tenant agrees to cover the cost incurred by the Landlord for re-marketing the property.

• If a new tenant is found, the existing Tenant agrees to pay the rent and payments in respect of utilities, communication services, TV licence and council tax up to and including the day before any new agreement is entered into so the Landlord is not disadvantaged in any way by allowing early release.

Late Rent

BOE Base Rate + 3%

Late rental payments overdue will be subject to interest at the rate of 3% over the Bank of England Base Rate, calculated from the date the payment was due up until the date payment is received.

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