Do all tenants have to sign the same tenancy agreement?

Do all tenants have to sign the same tenancy agreement?

12:30 PM, 22nd June 2015, About 9 years ago 4

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Hi All

Question – Lease Agreements and Holding Bond Do all tenants have to sign the same tenancy agreement

I send out to my tenants the AT5 form and lease agreements by Email.

As is the case with students these days, they appoint a scout to secure a property because the other co tenants are exploring the world.

I offer Single Household Assured Tenancies on a joint and several liability basis. There are normally 3 or 4 named persons on the lease agreement. They often send back individually their signatures in the required fields so what I have in effect is 3 or 4 separate pages of signatures and not 1 page with ALL the signatures.

For a single household Assured Tenancy must all signatures be on the one page?

Also does a holding bond need to be protected and at what stage is the holding bond part become the deposit – when the tenants have sent me the signed lease agreement or when I have received their signatures and then placed my signature on the lease and sent out the agreement?

Thanks

Asif


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Comments

Michael Barnes

14:25 PM, 24th June 2015, About 9 years ago

"AT5" sounds like you are in Scotland; they do things differently up there.

In England it is my understanding that signatures can be on separate copies of a contract.

Neil Woodhead

10:41 AM, 29th June 2015, About 9 years ago

Firstly if you have 3-4 unrelated students living in the property it is an HMO...do you have a licence? If you only have one signature on a document how do utilities, council tax etc verify ownership....you would need to give each tenant a copy of each agreement. If there is a "scout" how do you know others are legal occupants....do you not check tenants in and see them physically signing agreement?

You are only required to lodge deposit 30 days after tenancy start date...why are you taking a "holding bond" you cannot charge tenant for anything relating to the tenancy and in any event a "deposit" taken is fully refundable. View my profile to see how you can be assisted.

AA

20:56 PM, 29th June 2015, About 9 years ago

Hi Neil -
Some clarification. It is NOT an HMO basis it is a SINGLE HOUSEHOLD SHORT ASSURED TENANCY AGREEMENT. The fact that the tenants are not related is not material . The material point is there are 3 names on the lease agreement who are all jointly and severally liable. Their agreement is to act as a single household. If EACH tenant had a seperate agreemnt ( which would determine "common" areas and restricted areas, thereby depriving them "ACCESS TO WHOLE OF THE PROPERTY " - then you have an HMO ( and thus council tax liability falls on the landlord) - basis multiple leases.

My question was SAME lease is emailed to named tenants and each one sends back their signature ALONE - I thus have 3 returns of the SAME document but with single signatures. BORING QUESTION OR WHAT ?

They place a HOLDING BOND to secure the tenancy.

Michael Barnes

15:05 PM, 1st July 2015, About 9 years ago

Reply to the comment left by "Asif Ahmed" at "29/06/2015 - 20:56":

A household is defined by the relationship between the people, not by any agreement.

see https://www.gov.uk/private-renting/houses-in-multiple-occupation for definition of household.

If the students are not closely related, then it is more than one household in the eyes of the law.

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