Your responsibilities

You have a number of responsibilities as a private landlord.

Although your letting agent may be able to carry out some of these duties on your behalf, you'll still be legally responsible for them.

Any legal action that happens because these were not carried out will be your responsibility, not the letting agent's.

It's your responsibility to:

• register with the local council which covers the area where your let property is located.
• give the tenant your name and address
• register their deposit with an approved tenancy deposit scheme
• give the tenant a tenancy agreement and the correct information notes for their tenancy
• have an Energy Performance Certificate for the property
• respect the tenant's peace and quiet, and give them the correct amount of notice (24 hours or 48 hours) if you want to enter the property
• meet gas, electricity, carbon monoxide and other safety requirements
• make sure you've carried out a Legionella Risk Assessment
• meet the requirements for any properties with a private water supply
• maintain the property's structure and exterior (including drains, gutters and external pipes)
• allow adaptations for disabled people, within reason (your local council might be able to provide some support)
• make sure the property meets the Repairing Standard and give the tenant information on it (this is contained in the information notes which you legally have to give your tenant)
• meet your obligations for common repairs
• ensure you have appropriate buildings insurance for properties in a tenement
• give the tenant written notice if there's any defect in the property or work that needs to be carried out
• take action to deal with any antisocial behaviour by your tenants in or around your property
• follow the right legal procedures if you want your tenant to leave
• consider whether a house in multiple occupancy (HMO) licence is needed
• arrange to pay any income tax you need to pay on your income from letting the property

Changes from 16 September 2019

From 16 September anyone who applies to register will need to confirm they meet specific legal obligations.

The local authority may ask you to provide evidence of this.