Overview
An agreement between the property owner (landlord) and a tenant is referred to as Tenancy agreement. A Tenancy Agreement is also referred to as Assured Shorthold Tenancy Agreement (ASTA), Residential Tenancy Agreement (RTA) or Short Assured Tenancy (SAT) and it defines the expectations and responsibilities of a tenant during tenancy. The agreement lets an individual stay in a rental property for as long as he/she follows rules and pays regular rent.
A tenancy can either be:
- Periodic tenancy (i.e. it runs on a weekly or monthly basis).
- Fixed-term (i.e. it runs for a specific time period as defined in the agreement).
Apart from renting a room there are certain other options which a landlord can look forward to like renting it through Airbnb or avail rent a room relief by the UK government/HMRC.

Rights and responsibilities of a tenant and landlord
A tenant has certain rights in case he/she is residing in a privately rented property. Below mentioned are certain rights of a tenant:
Type of tenancy agreements
Components of a Tenancy agreement

A tenancy agreement includes the following:
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In case of any amendments to the agreement, both tenant and landlord must come to an understanding in order to alter the terms and conditions of the tenancy agreement. Additionally, a landlord cannot discriminate a tenant on the basis of any of the following:
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End a tenancy
A tenancy agreement must provide information on the notice period an individual has to give before leaving the property. An individual is responsible for paying rent for the complete fixed-term tenancy. A tenant can move out of the rental property early without paying the entire amount corresponding to full tenancy if:
On the other hand, if a landlord is ending the tenancy they must give the tenant proper notice, encompassing certain warnings and information. The information will depend on the terms and conditions of the tenancy agreement. Also, the rules are different basis the type of tenancy.
Assured shorthold tenancies (ASTs)
In certain conditions, a landlord can void the agreement without providing any reason. In order to cancel the agreement, all of the following must apply:
Assured tenancies
The landlord will be required to use one of the reasons stated in the Housing Act 1988.
Excluded tenancies or licences
Here, the landlord is only required to give ‘reasonable notice’ to quit. The notice doesn’t have to be in writing.
Non-excluded tenancy or licence
Landlord can end the agreement by serving a written ‘notice to quit’ and time period is often at least 4 weeks.
However, if the tenant does not leave the property, the landlord cannot force the tenant to leave. In case the notice period expires and still an individual does not leave the property, the landlord has the right to begin the process of dislodgment through the courts.