How much notice does a landlord have to give?

Let’s face it, leasing or letting a property can be tricky to navigate for landlords. Whilst most tenancies tend to be pretty smooth sailing, in some cases, tenants make life pretty stressful.  

Whether you need to regain possession of your property to sell it or to move back in, you need to know how much notice you’ll need to give your tenant the right amount of notice. It’s also important to take into account the legal landscape, having undergone its biggest shift with the implementation of the Renters’ Rights Act. Previous rules including the ‘no fault’ eviction process, have been completely replaced. 

Nearly all, if not most, private tenancies now operate as rolling, assured periodic tenancies, which automatically changes how much notice you need to give as a landlord. Here, we’ll look at how much notice a landlord needs to give under the current law, how the legal routes function and what steps you need to take if a tenant refuses to vacate the property. 

How much notice does a landlord have to give by law?

Understandably, deciding to give your tenants the boot can be a difficult decision to make. Whatever your reasons are, though, it’s important to make sure that you follow the law and give your tenants enough notice according to government guidelines.  How much notice you must legally give your tenants will then largely depend on the tenancy type.

The abolition of Section 21 notice

Due to the fact that the Section 21 notice has been abolished, Section 8 is now the only legal ground you can use to regain possession of your property. Under the updated framework, the specific timeframe regarding how much notice landlords need to give tenants will depend entirely on the type of grounds you’re using.

Notice Periods by Ground for Possession

Under the updated system, notice windows have been extended significantly for landlords who have done nothing wrong but need their property back, while remaining shorter for severe tenant defaults. To find out more about formatting and issuing these legal documents correctly, see our practical guide on how to serve an eviction notice.

Section 8 notices

In order to use a Section 8 notice, you will need certain reasons or grounds to give notice for your tenants to leave the property, such as rent arrears, antisocial behaviour, or illegal activity. You will need to then prove the ground specified in the notice at a court hearing.

As with other notice periods, notice for rent arrears was also temporarily extended during the height of the pandemic. Since 1 October 2021, however, landlords can now give just 2 weeks’ notice for rent arrears.

How much notice does a landlord need to give according to grounds for possession? 

Let’s now take a look at how much notice you need to give your tenants depending on which grounds for repossession you’re using: 

• Ground 1: When a landlord or close family member is moving into the home. This cannot be used within the first 12 months of the tenancy agreement (4 months). 
• Ground 1A: When a landlord has a genuine intention to sell the property. This cannot be used within the first 12 months of the tenancy agreement (4 months).
• Ground 8: When a tenant is in serious rent arrears and owes 3 or more months of rent.
• Ground 10 / 11: When there are minor or persistent late rent payments (4 weeks).
• Ground 14: When a tenant displays severe antisocial behaviour or nuisance. Court proceedings can begin two weeks after serving (immediately).

Can I evict tenants without a court order?

Sometimes, tenants may not leave after the date specified in the written notice. With an assured shorthold tenancy agreement, you cannot force the tenants to leave without a court order, as this may be regarded as landlord harassment.

While this can be quite frustrating for landlords, it’s important to remain calm and wait for a court order, or a Section 8 notice. You have a year after the notice period ends to start court action. If the tenancy is an excluded tenancy, however, you will likely not need a court order to evict tenants.

An excluded tenancy is typically where the tenant lives with the landlord as a lodger and shares rooms with them. Though you may not need a court order to evict excluded occupiers, you will still need to provide tenants with reasonable notice. Reasonable notice for an excluded tenancy will generally be the length of the rental payment period.

Say, for example, your tenants pay their rent monthly, you may be able to give them one month’s notice. Of course, notice will need to be given in writing as with any other tenancy agreement.

What about no-excluded tenancies?

Now that we know how much notice a landlord has to give for assured shorthold tenancies and excluded tenancies, you’re probably wondering how much notice does a landlord need to give for non-excluded tenancies, such as rolling agreements.

For less common types of tenancy, landlords will need to serve a  notice to quit. A notice to quit must give tenants at least 4 weeks’ notice, end on the first or last day of the tenancy period, and provide necessary legal information – including where to seek advice.

Bear in mind that you can only serve a notice to quit to tenants with basic protection, such as property guardians and students. You may be able to serve a notice to quit in cases where you live in the same building as your tenant but in a separate flat, or if you’re renting a property to one of your employees and they need to live there to do their job. If the occupier with basic protection doesn’t leave at the end of the notice period, you will still need to apply for a court order to evict them.

Although giving tenants notice to leave your property can be pretty stressful, having a good landlord insurance policy that covers loss of rent and legal expenses will give you one less thing to worry about. If you’re looking to protect yourself and your property, get in touch with one of our specialist advisers and get a quote today. We can help you find an affordable landlord insurance policy that offers your property suitable protection.