Trying to find a mechanism for the first two days rent?

Hi David,

Did the RLA say there would be a problem with the student moving in technically two days early?

So you are in fact doing the tenant a favour by moving their rent due date out to suit their circumstances and simply charging for rent pro-rated and this then qualifies as a fee? These fee ban interpretations have really gone bonkers.

Could you not begin the tenancy on 30 Sept, but informally allow him (or formally include it in the tenancy agreement) to pay the rent on the 1st of each month?

Sell him a pebble for the equivalent of 2 days rent.

Reply to the comment left by MasterG at 17/09/2019 – 10:47
Is a pebble worth more than a pepper corn ?!

…”if the rent is payable the day before each monthly date”… Why?? Not necessary.

Start the tenancy on the day he moves in, 30th September, his rental period will be 30th to 29th each month, collect the rent a few days late on or around the 2nd of each month to suit him, just make sure he knows his rent is for the rental period.

Sort out the odd days rent at the end of the tenancy if he wants to stay on past the 29th.

Reply to the comment left by Neil Patterson at 17/09/2019 – 08:52
No, they said it could be a problem (undetailed) of having two tenancies. Their “thinking” appeared to be that if there were a problem at the end then getting possesion in Court might be tricky e.g. how many S21 would you need to issue as technically both would still be running. Thanks

The academic year won’t last a full 12 montsh, so I would amend the tenancy agreement.
If you’re willing for tenant to move in without having paid deposit and first period’s rent in advance: start on the date the student moves in (29th), then amend the first rent payment to add the rent for the extra days. and subsequent 10 months at normal rent due on 1st, final payment reduced by the increase for the 1st period.
Alternatively, amend tenancy agreement to have 13 payments. The term remains 12 months. The first payment to cover the number of days until the student pays the first full month’s rent. Then 11 payments of a month. Final balancing payment is again reduced.

Start the tenancy on the 30th and the rent is due in calendar-monthly blocks (30th to 29th). The fact you accept/he pays you two days late is neither here-nor-there. When it comes to him moving out, either two ‘additional’ days probably won’t be necessary and he could move out on the last day of his final month’s rent payment (i.e. 29th) or he could pay you two day’s-worth of rent for the 30th & 31st should he desperately need to stay. I agree that you need to be careful, but don’t complicate things unnecessarily.

Just make the tenancy from 30 September for 12 months with rent due on 30th of each month (or last day of February) with an agreement that rent will not be considered late for a Section 8 claim if it is received on or before the Nth of the following month and all previous rent has been paid.

Do not shift the rent due date to be different to the start date of a period: that way lies madness trying to do calculations at the end of the tenancy or when issuing S21 notice.

It is normal, I believe, for rent to become due on the first day of a rental period, not on the day before.

You can charge more for the first rental period if it is longer than subsequent periods; see TFA Schedule 1 Para 1(5) BUT I would not go there because the calculation of one or two days’ rent to be lawful is subjective.

You also have the option, by careful wording of your agreement, to make the first period longer at no extra charge.