Residential Tenants have the following legal rights available to them:
The Tenant has the right to live in the property as his home, without interference and without being disturbed by the Landlord. Landlords may not freely enter the property or otherwise interfere with the Tenant's right to a peaceful and quiet enjoyment of the property. The Tenant's permission must be obtained before the Landlord may enter the property and notice must be given in this regard.
Tenant's have the right to know the terms of the tenancy and may request that the Landlord provide them with a Statement of Terms of their tenancy. Such a statement should include the following information:
The Tenant must make a written request for the Statement of Terms, which must be provided by the Landlord within 28 days of such request being made.
The Landlord must keep the structure and exterior of the property in good repair, including the roof, gutters, walls, windows and doors. The property must be free from defects and the Landlord must repair any reported defects in a reasonably timeous manner.
The property must be safe, with all electrical, gas and other systems and/or appliances meeting the requisite safety standards and being regularly checked. A valid gas safety certificate should be given to the Tenant and any furniture provided by the Landlord should be fire resistant.
For more information on the Landlord's repairing obligations, see Landlord Repairs. For more information on safety standards, see Health and Safety.
Landlords may not evict Tenants without good cause for doing so. Where the Landlord has a valid reason to evict the Tenant, he must first serve a Section 8 Notice on the Tenant. For more information on the grounds for possession and the Section 8 Notice, see Section 8 Notices.
Where the Landlord does not have a valid reason to evict the Tenant, or the initial fixed period of the tenancy has expired, the Landlord must serve a Section 21 Notice on the Tenant, providing at least 2 months written notice of his intention to regain possession of the property. For more information on the Section 21 Notice, see Section 21 Notices.
Where the Landlord and the Tenant have agreed upon additional rights of the Tenant (such as permission to keep pets, etc), these should be included in the Tenancy Agreement.