On 1 June 2019 the Tenant Fee Act (2019) will come into force. While some landlords seem oblivious to the repercussions of the act, it will have a major impact upon the way in which landlords find and manage their tenants. The idea is to make the industry as transparent as possible and limit the fees and charges which landlords can pass on to their tenants. There is obviously mixed opinion as to whether the act is “fair” with landlords highlighting the time, effort and expense it can take to change tenants. Tenants on the other hand argue that they should not be made to reimburse voluntary fees paid by landlords to various parties.
SUMMARY OF FINANCIALS
Under the terms of the Tenant Fees Act the following limitations and fines will come into force:-
• Landlords will only be able to hold up to 5 weeks rent as a tenancy deposit
• The holding deposit, to ensure the tenant application, can be no more than one weeks rent
• All other payments will be banned with the exception of contractual default penalties