From 1 December 2022, most people renting residential property in Wales (previously known as ‘tenants’, now known as ‘contract holders’) will do so under an occupation contract.
An occupation contract is a new type of residential letting agreement which governs the relationship between a residential landlord and contract holder. As previosut letting agreements (eg assured shorthold tenancies), occupation contracts set out the rights and obligations of landlords and contract holders. For more information, read Tenant's and owner's obligations.
Some important aspects of occupation contracts are:
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all occupation contracts have certain standard terms, which include:
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key matters (eg the names of the parties and address of the dwelling)
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fundamental terms (ie terms covering the most important aspects of the contract, like possession procedures and repair obligations)
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supplementary terms (ie the practical, day-to-day matters of the contract, like the requirement to let the landlord know if the dwelling will be unoccupied for more than four weeks)
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additional terms (ie terms addressing any other specifically agreed matters, like terms relating to pets)
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terms explaining the meaning and importance of the contract
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landlords must provide contract holders with a written statement of the standard terms within 14 days of the moving-in date (ie the date from which the contract holder is entitled to occupy the dwelling, known as the ‘occupation date’)
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landlords must provide contract holders with an Inventory (setting out all fixtures and fittings in the dwelling and their condition) within 14 days of the occupation date