Make your Free Tenancy Agreement for a Flat

Use this tenancy agreement to rent out a flat to tenants in England.

For use in England only.

A lease agreement for a flat is an assured shorthold tenancy (AST). It can be used where an owner of a flat wants to rent out the whole property. An AST is a type of tenancy that allows the landlord to charge a market rent and recover possession of the property by giving the tenant at least two months' notice to the tenant (expiring on or after the first six months).

Rent out your flat safely using the most popular kind of tenancy agreement for private landlords, the tenancy agreement for a flat. This straightforward assured shorthold tenancy agreement will help you avoid all the hassles of letting.

This type of agreement also makes it simpler to evict tenants who fail to pay their rent or cause a nuisance. As a landlord, use this tenancy agreement template to lay out terms and conditions, such as payment terms, highlight your obligations, clearly outline your tenant's rights and comply with tenant fees legislation.

Use this tenancy agreement:

• to rent out the whole of your flat for a fixed term
• when you will not be living at the property
• when the property will be the tenant's main home
• when the tenant is an individual
• when there is only one landlord
• only when the property is in England

This tenancy agreement template for a flat covers:

• the term of the tenancy
• rent payments
• any deposit required
• landlord responsibilities
• what the tenant can and cannot do at the property
• optional break clause
• optional rent increases
• end of the tenancy
• the requirements under the Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018 and the Tenant Fees Act 2019

You will need this agreement if you do not live at the flat and want to rent out your property. Under this residential tenancy agreement, all tenants at the property will be joint tenants under one tenancy. This means that all of the tenants are jointly responsible for the tenant obligations in the agreement. You will need this agreement to set out the tenant's and your obligations.

This tenancy agreement should only be used to list up to four tenants.

If more than three tenants (who are unrelated) live in the flat, the property may be classed as a House in Multiple Occupation (HMO). HMOs must comply with additional regulations and you may need to apply for a licence (if you don't you could be fined).

A guarantor is someone who agrees to the landlord to be legally liable for the tenant's rent and other responsibilities if they fail to pay.

This is the period the agreement will run for and can be any length you agree with the tenant, but the tenant has a right to stay in the property for at least six months. 

If a fixed term of fewer than six months is agreed you do not have a guaranteed right to possession if the tenant does not leave before the end of six months.

You can use this tenancy agreement let the flat for a maximum of 2 years and 11 months. Tenancies with a term of 3 years or more must be witnessed. Ask a lawyer for more information.

An Inventory is a detailed list of all of the items at the property and their condition. It is usual to provide a detailed inventory of the items in the property that the tenant can use.

The items listed on the inventory must be left in the same state of repair and condition when the tenant vacates. If not, any deposit held can be deducted to cover the cost of any repairs. It is highly recommended that an inventory is made.

You can take a deposit to hold to cover the cost of any breakages or damage to the property or its contents. If when the tenant leaves there is no damage or rent due the money is returned.

All deposits must be placed in a government-approved tenancy deposit scheme. Within 30 days of receiving the deposit, you must give the tenant details of the scheme and what is covered by the deposit. For more information, read Deposit protection schemes.

There are three authorised tenancy deposit schemes, two are insurance-based and the third is custodial. All three schemes offer free help and assistance if there is a disagreement about the return of the deposit. There is no charge for landlords or agents to use the custodial scheme but the insurance-based schemes charge membership fees and insurance premiums.

Landlords who fail to protect a deposit can be prevented from regaining possession of the property and can also be fined up to three times the amount of the deposit. For more information, read Deposit protection schemes.

The rent can be set at any level up to £100,000 per year in England and can be payable monthly or weekly. The level of rent should be the market rent similar to other lodgings and tenancies in the local area. 

This agreement assumes that the rent includes a cost towards the common areas (eg lighting the hallway, cleaning the common areas etc) but does not include outgoings (eg electricity and gas) and the tenant is responsible for a proportion of these costs. If you want your tenancy agreement to include outgoings, speak to a lawyer.

If there is more than one tenant renting the property (eg a couple or two friends), the rent in the agreement is the total rent for the property. All tenants are responsible for splitting any payments between themselves. The agreement provides that each tenant is responsible for the whole rent. This means that, if one tenant fails to pay, the remaining tenant is responsible for the full rent.

A landlord can increase the rent during the course of a tenancy using a rent increase clause in the tenancy agreement (if one is present). They must also follow the correct procedures and the proposed rent increase must not be excessive or unfair. This tenancy lets you choose if (and how) you want to increase the rent.

If the tenancy is for less than two years, it is recommended that the rent be fixed for the duration of the tenancy. If the tenancy is for more than two years, the rent can either be fixed for the duration of the tenancy or the landlord can choose to increase the rent once per year.

For more information, read Private renting rent increases.

Tenants generally cannot end the agreement before the end of the tenancy term unless a break clause is present. This tenancy agreement allows you to specify if (and how) the tenant, you or both parties can end the tenancy early using a break clause.

You, as the landlord, can also end the agreement by serving notice on the tenant but you can't obtain possession of the flat during the first six months.

This document is compliant with the Tenant Fees Act 2019. It excludes fees prohibited under the Act, while it also allows for certain damages to be recoverable. For more information, read Tenant fees.

Ask a lawyer for advice on:

• tenants who want to run a business at the property
• student/college accommodation
• tenants who are a company or partnership
• properties with rent of more than £100,000 per year
• advice if there are 3 or more prospective tenants that form more than 1 household, as the property may need to be licensed
• a property that is outside England