Cornwall Homeseekers
Log In Not yet a member? Register

Tenants

Information for Tenants

 
At Cornwall Homeseekers, we let and manage a variety of furnished and unfurnished properties throughout Cornwall for rent.  All security deposits are held in a designated Clients Account and fully bonded.
 

TENANT'S GUIDE

 
Although Letting Agents have different procedures, this guide is intended as a general overview to assist you when renting a property. We have set out below a few significant pointers to assist you.  
 
FEES: You will find full details of our fees under 'Tenants Fees' 

 
REFERENCES: We will require two references for each adult applying for a tenancy; ideally this should be a work reference and a landlord reference, on headed paper where possible. If you are self employed we will need to contact your accountant. We will also need to run credit checks. Occasionally, a guarantor will be required

 

GUARANTOR: A guarantor must be a relative of the tenant and a home owner.  The guarantor must be aware that they will stand as guarantor for all tenants named on the tenancy agreement for the entire occupancy of the property, not just for the period of the initial tenancy term. A credit check will also need to be carried out.  

 
RENT AND DEPOSIT: The deposit must be paid in full, along with the pet-cleaning fee if applicable, before contracts can be drawn up. The first month's rent must be paid prior to the start of your tenancy and rent is to be paid monthly in advance, commencing on the first day of the tenancy and then on the same day each month thereafter. The preferred method is by bank standing order.
 
 
Brief guide to services

 
 
1. The Tenant will be responsible for insuring their own possessions

 

2. The Tenant will take over all utilities such as Gas, Electricity, Water/Sewage charges, Council Tax and Telephone upon moving into the property.

 

3. No pets are allowed unless the Landlord has given consent

 

4. Reasonable notice should be given in the event that the Letting Agent or Landlord wishes to inspect the property outside pre-agreed times.  It is usual for the Agent to inspect the property at least once every 6 months, 4 months after your start date for your Tenancy.

 

5. Most Lets are for 6 months, although some Landlords may consider longer terms of say 12 months.

 

6. Should you wish to quit your Tenancy earlier than the agreed term, you will be liable for all rent and services until the end of the agreed Tenancy.

 

7. The most common type of Tenancy Agreement is assured short hold.

 

8. The Letting Agents will deal with the property viewings, references, agreements and getting you moved in.  If the agent has been instructed to manage the property then you will normally report any repairs or queries to them.  If not, then you will deal directly with the Landlord.
 

 

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

RIGHT TO RENT SCHEME FROM 1ST FEBRUARY 2016

The Home Office has just issued a helpful user’s guide to carrying out Right to Rent checks which can be found here. The guide contains an FAQs section to assist you with your queries. For any additional questions please go to the www.gov.uk website. It is intended that the user’s guide will be updated regularly with additional FAQs.   

Right to Rent checks should be carried out on all adult tenants for new tenancy agreements in England from 1 February 2016.

Checks must be carried out on all adult occupants – the rules apply to new tenancy agreements from 1 February 2016. Existing tenancy agreements are not affected.

How do we make a check?

 

The steps are:

 

1.Establish who will live at the property

2.Obtain a tenant’s original acceptable documents

3.Check the documents with the tenant present

4.Copy and keep the copied documents on file and record the date of the check

 

If you/the tenant is only allowed to be in the UK for a limited period of time, you will have to carry out follow-up checks at a later date.

 

Which documents can be used as evidence?

 

Documents include:

 

  • UK passport 

 

  • EEA passport or identity card 

 

  • Permanent residence card or travel document showing indefinite leave to remain 

 

  • Home Office immigration status document 

 

  • Certificate of registration or naturalisation as a British citizen 

 

  • Two readily available and easily accessible documents from a wide list.

 

Individuals without identity documents such as a passport can still prove their right to rent using other documents on the approved list which is contained in the User’s Guide here. The Home Office has worked closely with various bodies, including housing and homelessness charities, to design a document list which can accommodate a wide range of individual scenarios.

 

Landlords and agents are not expected to be immigration experts or to have a specialist knowledge of immigration documents or visas. Anyone who is shown a false document will only be liable for a civil penalty if it is reasonably apparent it is false.

 

What if a potential tenant has an outstanding case with the Home Office?

 

If a person cannot show any of the acceptable documents listed but states they have an outstanding immigration case with the Home Office, a landlord can request that the Home Office carry out a right to rent check by completing an online form. You will receive a clear ‘yes’ or ‘no’ response within two working days.