The letting fees Act came into effect on 1st June 2019 making various agent and landlord fees illegal. Landlords will only be able to charge for payments defined as permitted in the legislation and deposit charges must be under 6 weeks rent.
Here are some important rules that landlords need to know:
- The ban is only relevant for contracts signed after the 1st of June 2019. This will change after 1st June 2020 and will then apply to all tenancies
- Cleaning and check-out fees will have to be justified by evidence
- Charges for property viewings will be banned
- All admin costs will be banned (referencing, credit checks and guarantors)
- Deposits will be capped at 5 weeks rent or 6 weeks if the annual rent of the property is expected to be more than £50,000
- Holding fees will be capped at 1 weeks rent and agents will be banned from continuing to advertise a property once they have received payment
- Contract changes will be capped at £50
- Moving out ‘early’ charges will be capped to the amount the tenant would pay if they followed through with the tenancy until the end of the agreement
- Late payments will be capped at annual percentage rate of the Bank of England for each day the payment is outstanding. This must be written in the contract
For more information, please visit the Gov.uk website.