AST vs PT - pros and cons for tenants

Tenant Discussion
1

I would like to discuss the pros and cons of the subject as I’m now in a situation when I have to decide whether I, as a tenant, need to choose between AST or PT.

The main advantage of AST for tenants is that it gives some sense of stability. If you are a good tenant you can’t be given either s21 or s8 notices, so you have a guarantee for the duration of the AST.

The main disadvantage is you can incur extra costs if you need to leave before a break clause (if there is one at all).

The main advantage of PT is you stay flexible, and the main disadvantage is you don’t have any protection.

Now, a couple of questions to ask oneself when choosing:

  1. Do I need a guarantee to stay in my current place and therefore should go for AST? What kind of tenants may need such a guarantee? Is it mostly families with kids or those who really love their location?

  2. Is it worth paying extra for a yearly renewal of the contract in case of AST?

  3. Can I still feel safe if I’m a good tenant (no rent arrears, no complaints from anyone) even if I go for a PT?

  4. Some landlords prefer AST over PT. But is possible to negotiate an AST with minimum penalties in case you need to leave before the end of AST? By minimum I mean for example, an agreement to be able to leave after month 8 of a 12 month AST and only paying a rent for a maximum of two months after you served your notice. (Is this a real and valid scenario, btw?)

  5. If there’s a letting agency in between, are they likely to push for AST to benefit from the contract renewal, or this is not always in their bets interest?

  6. Does all the negotiated flexibility you as a tenant requested have to be in the AST?

2

What do you mean by PT? I’m not aware of any other option to AST other than being s longer with a live-in landlord.

3

Think it means a Periodic Tenancy

4

OK. A periodic tenancy is still an AST. I would say a PT is better for both tenants and landlord as it gives you flexibility if circumstances change. I have tenants who have been on a PT for years. Security is a function of paying rent on time and looking after the place, not the type of tenancy you’re on.

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5

A tenant should not be charged fees to renew any Tenancy as these were banned in the Tenant Fees Act in 2019.

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6

You could get a break clause written in for half way through a 12 month AST or you could have a six month AST then go onto a periodic if you think you may need to leave.
Then it’s standard for one month’s notice to be given by the tenant to coincide with a rent date (usually).

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