Ending your tenancy or moving house (section 25)

How you can end your tenancy.

25.1.  If you want to end your tenancy, you must give the Council at least 28 days’ written notice (called ‘Notice to Quit’) The notice must be signed and dated. Please contact the Council for further information.

25.2.  If you do not give a notice which complies with the requirements in clause 25.1 above the notice will not be valid and your tenancy will not end at the end of the notice period stated. This means that you will remain responsible for the rent, service charges and any other payments due in respect of your tenancy and you will still be bound by the conditions in this Tenancy Agreement.

25.3.  You must return your keys to the Council on or before the date the notice period ends. If you do not, we will change the locks and charge you for this plus a late key return charge.

25.4.  In the case of joint tenants, one tenant can end the tenancy by giving the Council notice in the same way, regardless of the views of any other joint tenant(s). Thus, one joint tenant can exercise this right and end the tenancy for all joint tenants. Notice given by one joint tenant will be binding on both or all of you.

25.5.  If you leave your home before the end of the four week period, you will still be responsible for paying rent until the end of the notice period, but you may not be eligible for benefits to assist with housing costs.

25.6.  Once you have given your Notice to Quit you cannot withdraw it.

25.7.  You must allow the Council access to inspect the property before you leave, upon request.

How the council can end your tenancy

Introductory Tenancies

25.8.  If you have an Introductory Tenancy the Council can give you written notice in accordance with the Housing Act 1996 (as amended) that it intends to go to court to seek possession and in that notice reasons for that decision will be set out. You will have the right to request a review of that decision. If you do not request a review and/or you do but the decision to proceed with possession is upheld on review, the Council can then issue possession proceedings against you to evict you from the property.

Secure Tenancies

25.9.  If you have a secure tenancy and you are not occupying your property as your only or main home and/or you have sublet all of your home, the Council will end your tenancy by giving you a Notice to Quit. This will give you at least four weeks’ notice. The Council can then issue possession proceedings against you to evict you from the property.

25.10. The Council can end your tenancy by obtaining a Possession Order for the property from the court and by the execution of the Possession Order. The Council may seek such an order on any of the statutory grounds for possession set out in schedule 2 to the Housing Act 1985 (as amended).

At the end of your tenancy

25.11. When your tenancy has ended you will remain responsible for, and must pay immediately, any unpaid rent and any other payments due under this Agreement. If you fail to do so we will undertake legal action to recover any outstanding monies.

25.12. At the end of your tenancy you must:

a)       Leave your home so we can take possession of it
b)       Leave your home, including the loft and garden, clean and tidy
c)       Remove all your belongings and furniture
d)       Remove all rubbish

25.13. At the end of your tenancy, you must return all keys that you have been provided (including door keys, window keys, keys/fobs for shared areas where applicable, shed keys, alley keys and meter keys) to the Council’s Civic Office by 12pm (noon) on the day your tenancy ends.

25.14. You must provide the Council with your forwarding address and contact details.

25.15. You must leave your home in the same condition it was in at the start of the tenancy, allowing for fair wear and tear.

25.16. You must leave fixtures and fittings in the same condition they were in at the start of the tenancy or the date they were installed, allowing for fair wear and tear. Fixtures and fittings mean all appliances in your home that the Council own, including installations for supplying heating and hot water, storage cupboards, pipes, and cables from meters (but not the meter itself) and pipes or cables to the meter.

25.17. You must make good any damage to your home before you move. If you do not do so, then the Council will charge you for replacing or repairing missing or damaged items.

25.18. You agree that the Council may get rid of any furniture and belongings you have left in the property after the tenancy has been terminated in such manner as the Council sees fit. The Council will charge you the cost of removing the items and doing any cleaning that is needed.

25.19. You agree that if any animal(s) are left in the property they will be treated as abandoned by you and, in these circumstances the Council will arrange for the animal(s) to be removed. The Council will charge you any costs associated with the removal and care of these animals.

25.20. The Council will also charge you for removing or making good any alterations you carried out at your home without first getting the Council’s written permission.

25.21. You must not allow any person to remain living in your home when your tenancy ends. If you do, the Council will take Court action to gain possession and you may be charged for use and occupations charges and the Council’s court costs.

25.22. If, as a result of a breach by you of your obligations in this section of the Agreement and/or acts committed by you and/or members of your household or your visitors for which you, as the tenant, were responsible, we are unable to re-let your home immediately to another tenant, you must pay to the Council the equivalent of the rent that the Council loses by not being able to let the property, until it is ready to be re-let.

25.23. You may not be granted another Council tenancy if you:

a)       Are evicted from your Council property
b)       Abandon this property and do not return the keys
c)       Leave the property in a poor condition and fail to pay for repairs and/or replacements, and/or
d)       Owe rent for any previous Council properties