Helpful Information for Tenants & Landlords - we answer your questions
Helpful Information for Tenant & Landlords - we answer your questions about how COVID-19 impacts your tenancy.
These are certainly unusual, unprecedented and sad times. Over the past few days we have been asked a number of questions relating to the current situation and your tenancy. Things have been happening so quickly, decision are being made in hours instead of days or months and there is so much information being pumped out it is hard to see the wood for the trees.
We have put together a list of the most frequent questions we are being asked along with some really useful links to the ever-changing information.
Tenants Not Paying Rent
Understandably with the employment situation this is one of the most common questions. Advice from the government is that if the tenant cannot pay as they’re not working because of self-isolation, have COVID-19 or have lost their employment as a result of the virus, evictions cannot start for a period of 3 months.
Landlords; it is important to understand why the tenant cannot pay the rent and they should inform you as early as possible. The tenant may be able to apply for some form of benefit and you may decide to come to some agreement with them.
Landlords may be able to claim for a three months holiday period on buy to let mortgage to ease their financial situation.
Tenants; if you cannot pay your rent now and your landlord agrees to some form of relief, it is important to remember that you will still need to pay the missed rent at some point through the tenancy, it is not “free rent”. Tenants not paying rent may find that any future moves will be jeopardised by a poor reference.
As an example: Where the rent is £500pcm, 3 months not paying will mean that £1,500 will need to be made up over the subsequent months. i.e. you would need to pay £650 over the following 10 months to clear your debt.
We would therefore encourage all tenants to pay their rent and as much of it as they can afford.
You can read the Government advice here
Home Moving and Completions
We have had a lot of questions around moving home and this remains a slightly grey area. The latest guidance from the Government, renters should, as far as possible, delay moving to a new property whilst emergency measures are in place to fight Coronavirus.
However, if moving is unavoidable for contractual reasons, i.e .you have already exchanged, and the parties are unable to reach an agreement to delay, then people must follow the advice on social distancing to minimize the spread if the virus. Anyone with symptoms, self-isolating or shielding from the virus, should follow medical advice and not move for the time being.
This is subject to all parties being able to fulfill their requirements and do consider that removal companies are classed as “non essential’ and therefore closed. So, if you require a removal company to move home then a delay is inevitable.
You can read the government advice here.
Viewings and Valuations
Government advice is that viewings and valuations should not go ahead at the present time. However, we have a number of options to allow us to virtually showcase a property through video.
We are working on a “Social Distancing Valuation” done remotely which will allow both landlords and sellers to still get an accurate appraisal of their home or rental property. More on this to follow:
Maintenance and Repairs
The latest guidance states that any work carried out in people’s homes, for example by tradespeople carrying out repairs and maintenance, can continue, provided that the tradesperson is well and has no symptoms. Public England guidelines, including maintaining a two-metre distance from household occupants, must be followed to ensure everyone’s safety.
No work should be carried out in any household which is isolating or where an individual is being shielded, unless it to remedy a direct risk to the safety of the household, such as emergency plumbing or repairs, and where the tradesperson is willing to do so.
As such we are only carry out essential and emergency repairs at present.
Gas Safety Certificates
Gas safety engineers have been advised to carry out emergency work only. They are not going ahead with annual inspections or safety certificates. If your gas safety expires in the next three weeks, keep good notes as to why the certificate has not been renewed.
Gas Safety has written to the government and asked for guidance as they have their legal obligation to make sure the certificate is valid at all times. In the meantime, no gas safety renewals will go ahead.
Disclaimer: Please note that we are doing our best to keep this information up to date, the details and situation is changing at an unprecedented pace so please bare with us if all the information is not up to date.