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One person will be soon to leave with the other three wishing to remain

Tenant Discussion
#1

Hello,

I was wondering if someone could help. There are 4 of us who share a house under a joint AST with a fixed term of 12 months which recently ended. We have since rolled onto a periodic tenancy but it looks like one person will be soon to leave with the other three wishing to remain on the same existing terms.

From what I can gather, one way to go about it might be for one of us to trigger the notice period and terminate the periodic tenancy before the remaining three people negotiate and sign a new AST fixed term contract with the landlord. However, we’d rather do something simpler, if possible, and just amend the existing periodic tenancy (based on our now expired AST) and remove the name of the one person who’s leaving.

Does anyone know if this would be possible and how we’d go about it? I appreciate it would require the acceptance of our landlord to agree to this but first want to understand if it’s technically possible to do.

Thanks in advance :slight_smile:

Going Periodic: What Happens When a Tenancy's Fixed Term Ends?
#2

You wouldn’t be able to just remove someone from the tenancy in this way. I believe a deed of assignment would also not be possible because the tenancy is now periodic. The ideal from yours and the landlords position is to do nothing. However, the outgoing tenant would remain legally liable for the tenancy and rent so probably won’t go for that. I’m afraid the only real option is for the one who’s leaving to serve notice and the landlord to give you all a new tenancy. The landlord would be allowed to charge any admin costs associated with this, but you could suggest that these are paid by the outgoing tenant.

#3

Thanks a lot for your response, David - I thought this might be the case.

Since posting this a few hours ago, I did find a resource and downloadable form on the UK .Gov website which appears to be a means of amending a Statutory Periodic Tenancy. However, I’m not entirely sure of its context or legitimacy (despite it being a Government recommended thing).

It’s Form 1 of this page here: Assured tenancy forms - GOV.UK I don’t know if this is something you’ve ever been aware of, or would have a view on.

Thanks again for your time.

#4

I think that form is for minor changes to terms and conditions, such as a s13 notice for increased rent etc. With different people, this would be a new tenancy and I don’t believe the form would be useable. Joint tenancies can be a pain for the tenant. Sorry.

#5

David’s suggestion of a new tenancy strikes me as the best way forward. As a landlord, it is what I would look to do for my tenants for surety and comfort.

#6

Thanks Nilesh and David - really appreciate your knowledge and expertise on this one! I feel we’ll be doing the right thing taking your advice :slight_smile: