Assured shorthold tenancy agreement template

We’ve partnered with Farillio to bring you a free assured shorthold tenancy agreement template – something every landlord should consider having in place.

This document has been produced by Farillio so we can’t take responsibility for its contents. We'd recommend you take professional advice before making any important decisions based on its contents.

Why use a Farillio template?

Farillio created their documentation (including this free tenancy agreement) specifically with small business owners and the self-employed in mind. It helps you meet your legal responsibilities, providing solutions for your particular needs.

Our partnership with them lets us bring you quality, customisable legal documentation.

• See all our business resources from Farillio
• See all our landlord resources from Farillio

What is an assured shorthold tenancy agreement?

A tenancy agreement is a contract between a landlord and their tenants, which sets out the legal terms and conditions of the tenancy.

Most tenancy agreements will automatically be assured shorthold tenancy agreements. They will likely be this type of tenancy agreement if:

• you're a private landlord or housing association
• the tenancy began on or after 15 January 1989
• the property is your tenants’ main residence
• you don’t live in the property

A tenancy can’t be an assured shorthold tenancy agreement if:

• it started before 15 January 1989
• the rent is in excess of £100,000 a year
• the rent is lower than £250 a year (lower than £1,000 if the property is in London)
• it's a business or licensed premises
• it’s a holiday let
• the landlord is a local council

Why do I need an assured shorthold tenancy agreement?

Even if you don’t have a written contract with your tenant, a tenancy agreement will still be in place. Under s54(2) of the Law of Property Act 1925, a tenancy will exist as soon as a tenant starts paying rent.

However, having a written tenancy agreement allows you to make certain stipulations, such as how and when you will review rent or the circumstances under which you may withhold all or part of your tenant's deposit.

Without a written agreement you won’t even be able to prove how much rent the tenant owes you, and may find yourself caught out.

If you don’t have an assured shorthold tenancy agreement that you currently use for your properties, you can download the template provided by Farillio.

What to include in an assured shorthold tenancy agreement

There are a number of things that you can include in an assured shorthold tenancy agreement. Our template covers:

• the names of everyone involved in the agreement
• how much the rent will be
• how often the rent will be paid
• how much the deposit will be
• reasons you may withhold all or part of the deposit
• the address of the property
• the start date and length of the tenancy
• the tenants' responsibilities, such as paying Council Tax and maintaining the property
• your obligations, such as repairs to the property

There are other agreements and obligations you may want to consider including things like:

• how and when you'll review the rent
• whether the property can be sublet
• whether the tenancy can be ended early and how this can be done

If you want to add to or remove parts of the tenancy agreement, you should work with a legal professional to do this.

Making sure your assured shorthold tenancy agreement complies with the law

If you're considering making amendments to the assured shorthold tenancy agreement, you need to make sure that those changes comply with the law.

It’s illegal to discriminate against potential tenants on the grounds of:

• age
• gender reassignment
• being married or in a civil partnership
• being pregnant or on maternity leave
• disability
• race, including colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin
• religion or belief
• sex
• sexual orientation

If you have any concerns about what you can or can’t include in your assured shorthold tenancy agreement, you should talk to your solicitor.

But before you worry too much about what you do or don't want to include, take a look at our assured shorthold tenancy agreement example provided by Farillio, which you can download for free.

Deposit schemes for assured shorthold tenancy agreements

For properties in England and Wales you have a choice of three deposit schemes:

• Deposit Protection Service
• MyDeposits
• Tenancy Deposit Scheme

Scotland has its own choice of tenancy deposit schemes, as does Northern Ireland.

Tenant Fees Act 2019

The introduction of the Tenant Fees Act 2019 means that landlords and their agents can no longer charge tenants fees for things like inventories and referencing.

Read our article to understand which fees landlords can still charge their tenants.