In addition to the agreed rent and upfront deposit charged by the landlord, there are a host of other bills which you may be liable for outside of the tenancy agreement.

If you are renting a property by yourself you could be paying the council tax. Ideally, this should be stated clearly in the tenancy agreement. If there is any doubt enquire with the private landlord or local council. For those tenants who share or rent only part of the property the landlord will usually pay the council tax, however, it is likely this cost will be included as part of the rent to each tenant.

Utilities such as water, gas, electricity and telephone may or may not be included according to the tenancy agreement. If you are the sole tenant then it is likely that the water utility company will charge you. Multi occupation of rented property usually means the landlord will pay the bill and include this in the rent. Some landlords install coin or card meters for electricity and gas and therefore the responsibility for continued supply rests firmly with the tenant. It is worth noting that the gas and electric utility companies impose maximum resale prices, therefore the landlord cannot inflate the price charged beyond what is recommended. However, maximum resale charges do not apply if the rent is charged on an all-inclusive basis or if a flat rate is charged to cover usage.

Before entering into any tenancy agreement whether as an individual or a multi - occupier, find out who is responsible for paying the council tax and all utility bills, otherwise, the total renting cost may be higher than envisaged. If you are a tenant you can apply for a personal loan on the right.

More help

For further information visit the Office of Fair Trading which has produced a leaflet entitled ‘Unfair tenancy terms – don’t get caught out’.

Please Note! YOUR HOME IS AT RISK IF YOU DO NOT KEEP UP REPAYMENTS ON A MORTGAGE OR OTHER LOAN SECURED ON IT. ALL SECURED OR UNSECURED LOANS ARE SUBJECT TO STATUS. SECURED LOANS ARE SECURED ON PROPERTY.

© uk-property-business-plan.co.uk Resources Resources2

IT IS IMPORTANT THAT YOU READ ALL THE LEGAL NOTICES ON THIS WEBSITE.

Please note, the services and information on this site do not constitute any form of advice or recommendation by UK Property Business Plan and are not intended to be relied upon by users in making any order or purchase. Appropriate independent advice should be obtained before making any such decision.