YOUR HOME

Your Home

Paying your rent

As tenant, you will be expected to pay a tenancy deposit at the start of your tenancy in accordance with the Tenancy Deposit Scheme (Scotland) Regulations 2011. Rent will be payable in advance, calendar monthly using Direct Debit.

Subletting and lodgers

Tenants cannot sublet their property or take in lodgers.

What is the Tenant Information Pack for the Private Rented Sector?

The pack gives information to tenants in privately rented housing. It talks about your home, tenancy and landlord, and the responsibilities of you and your landlord. The pack is not part of your tenancy agreement but sets out important information that is relevant to you and your landlord. The pack contains a summary of legislation relevant to private tenants. Should you want more detailed legal information, or opinion, you should seek specialist advice.

Why is the Tenant Information Pack important?

The pack gives you clear information about private renting. The pack ensures that all tenants in privately rented homes receive the same information.

Breach of tenancy

We will make all reasonable efforts to fulfil their part of the contract and will expect you as the tenant to do the same. We may take action against any tenant who breaches any part of the tenancy agreement.

If you breach any terms of the tenancy, we can seek possession using the grounds for regaining possession. If you receive a Notice to Quit or AT6 Notice, do not ignore it. If you would like further advice and assistance on this, contact your local Citizens Advice Bureau or your local council’s housing office.

Grounds for landlords regaining possession of their property

There are 17 grounds a private landlord can use to evict a short assured tenant. Grounds 1-8 are mandatory grounds: that is, if they are proved, a Sheriff must grant an order for possession. Grounds 9-17 are discretionary grounds: that is, even if they are proved, a Sheriff will grant a possession order only if they believe it is reasonable to do so. In summary, the grounds are:

Mandatory grounds

(1) The landlord wants the property to be their own home or the property was previously their own home.

(2) A lender has repossessed the landlord’s property due to mortgage arrears and wants to sell it.

(3) Off-season holiday let (i.e. the property is normally rented out as a holiday home).

(4) Short leases (less than 12 months) between lets to students.

(5) The property is needed by a minister or full-time lay missionary.

(6) The landlord intends to carry out major work on the property.

(7) The tenant has died and the landlord starts the eviction process within 12 months of the death.

(8) The tenant has three months' rent arrears. This is a mandatory ground, however, Sheriffs may apply discretion where the rent arrears have been caused by a delay in paying housing benefit.

Discretionary grounds

(9) Suitable alternative accommodation is available to the tenant.

(10) The tenant was served a Notice to Quit but did not leave.

(11) Persistent delay in paying rent.

(12) Some rent is unpaid.

(13) Breach of the tenancy agreement.

(14) The tenant has allowed or caused damage to the property or the building’s common parts.

(15) The tenant has used the property for illegal purposes or has caused a nuisance or annoyance to neighbours.

(16) Damage to the landlord’s furniture.

(17) The property was let to the tenant because of their job and they no longer have this job.

Tenant’s main responsibilities

You have certain responsibilities as a tenant. Please read your tenancy agreement carefully for more specific information, but the following list of responsibilities will apply to most tenancies.

To occupy the property as your main home.
To pay your rent in full and on time.
To contact your landlord immediately if you are having difficulty paying the rent.
Not to cause damage to the property, fixtures, fittings or furniture belonging to the landlord and not to allow members of your household or visitors to do so.
To read and comply with your tenancy agreement as regards its policies on smoking in the property, keeping pets etc.
Not to make alterations to the property without getting your landlord’s written permission first.
To report promptly the need for any repairs to the landlord.
Not to cause disturbance, nuisance or annoyance to neighbours and not to allow your visitors to do so.
To allow the landlord access to the property to inspect it or carry out repairs after giving sufficient notice.
To give your landlord written notice when you wish to end the tenancy.
To maintain any communal areas if the maintenance is not included in your rent.
To put out bins and recycling boxes for collection.

Everyone has the right to live safely and peacefully without worrying about being annoyed or harassed. Antisocial behaviour means behaviour that causes or is likely to cause fear, alarm or distress. If you act in a way that causes nuisance or annoyance and stops people enjoying the peaceful occupation of their home, this may be considered antisocial behaviour. These actions include, but are not limited to:

persistent, excessive noise;
verbal or physical abuse of neighbours;
racial or sexual harassment;
vandalism in the neighbourhood or damaging neighbours’ property; or
drug abuse or selling drugs.

You are also responsible for the behaviour of family or friends visiting your property. Your landlord may take action against you if you have broken a clause in the tenancy agreement which refers to antisocial behaviour.

If you are affected by other people’s antisocial behaviour, you should keep a written record of the incidents, with dates and times. Depending on the seriousness of the situation and how badly it affects you, you should contact the Police or your nearest Citizens Advice Bureau. Your local council’s Antisocial Behaviour Team should also be able to give you more information on these issues.

Landlord’s main responsibilities

To give you their name and address.
To give you a tenancy agreement.
To respect your right to peace and quiet in the property.
To give proper notice before entering the property.
To meet gas, electricity and other safety requirements in the property.
To maintain the property’s structure and exterior.
To follow the correct legal procedures if they want you to leave.
To register with their local council.
To have an Energy Performance Certificate for the property.
To ensure the property meets the Repairing Standard.
To take action to address any antisocial behaviour by their tenants in and around the property.
To register any deposit with an approved tenancy deposit scheme.
To give you the Tenant Information Pack.

Landlords have a responsibility to prevent their tenants behaving in an antisocial way in and around their homes. This means that if tenants are acting in a way that causes or is likely to cause alarm, distress, nuisance or annoyance to anyone living near their home, the landlord must take action. Steps landlords can take include:

investigating complaints about their tenants' behaviour;
writing to tenants to explain that their behaviour is causing concern and asking them to modify it;
giving advice on noise reduction;
asking the council to apply for an Antisocial Behaviour Order for the tenants;
going to court to get an interdict to prevent the tenants behaving in a certain way; and
threatening to evict the tenants.

If a landlord's attempts fail, they can ask the council for help to address the antisocial behaviour. However, if a landlord does not try to stop the antisocial behaviour, the local council can serve an Antisocial Behaviour Notice on the landlord ordering them to take specific action to deal with the problem. If the landlord does not do what the Antisocial Behaviour Notice says, the council can ask a court to stop rent payments to the landlord and give the council control of the property.

Repairing Standard

We seek to allocate all properties in good order and in line with our minimum lettable standard. Your landlord must carry out a pre-tenancy check of your property to identify work required to meet the Repairing Standard (described below) and notify you of any such work. Your landlord also has a duty to repair and maintain your property from the tenancy start date and throughout the tenancy. This includes a duty to make good any damage caused by doing this work. On becoming aware of a defect, your landlord must complete the work within a reasonable time.

A privately rented property must meet the Repairing Standard as follows:

The property must be wind and water tight and in all other respects reasonably fit for people to live in.
The structure and exterior (including drains, gutters and external pipes) must be in a reasonable state of repair and in proper working order.
Installations for supplying water, gas and electricity and for sanitation, space heating and heating water must be in a reasonable state of repair and in proper working order.
Any fixtures, fittings and appliances that the landlord provides under the tenancy must be in a reasonable state of repair and in proper working order.
Any furnishings that the landlord provides under the tenancy must be capable of being used safely for the purpose for which they are designed.
The property must have a satisfactory way of detecting fires and for giving warning in the event of a fire or suspected fire.
If, after notification of any problem, the problem persists, has not been attended to satisfactorily or if there is disagreement about whether or not there is a problem, then you have the right to refer the matter to the Private Rented Housing Panel. The Private Rented Housing Panel has power to require your landlord to carry out work necessary to meet the Repairing Standard.

Repairs and maintenance – Access

You must give your landlord reasonable access to the property to do repairs and maintenance. If you fail to agree a suitable time, your landlord must give you at least 24 hours' written notice that they intend to enter the property unless they need to do an emergency repair.