Assured Shorthold Tenancy Agreement
This agreement creates an assured shorthold tenancy agreement (AST) for a specific room in the property. The tenant is also given a right to use and access the communal parts of the property but the landlord retains control of the common parts and may access these areas as and when they need to.
When is my tenancy an AST?
ASTs are the default tenancy in the private rented sector, and your tenancy will be an AST where all of the following conditions are met-
- The rent is between £250 and £100,000 per annum;
- The tenant is a person or group of people
- The property will be the tenant's main home; and
- The landlord does not live in the same building as the tenant.
Why choose a room only tenancy?
For landlords of houses in multiple occupation (HMO), it is often easier to rent out the property by the room, particularly where the tenants do not know each other.
If you are renting out a property to three or more people, where at least two of the tenants are unrelated, then you will also need to comply with the HMO management regulations or risk significant penalties.
The best way of doing this is to have regular access to the property for inspections. Under a joint tenancy this may not be possible as the tenants have the right to refuse you access to the property. However, with a room-only agreement, you retain control over the common parts of the property meaning the tenants can only refuse you access to their individual rooms. This makes it significantly easier to perform inspections within the common parts of the property.
When should these tenancies not be used?
If you are keen to rent the property on a joint tenancy then you should use one of our ASTs designed for letting the whole property on one agreement. Typically, this will be used when you rent the property to families or a group of friends.
Both of these agreements create assured shorthold tenancies. On this page you’ll find HMO tenancy agreements, but you may also require a single tenancy agreement if you’re letting out the entire property to one family or close group.
As a general rule most agreements created in the private rented sector will be assured shorthold tenancy agreements, however there are a number of circumstances where an assured shorthold tenancy agreement cannot be created, such as letting to companies or renting out rooms within your own home.
If your tenancy cannot be an AST then these agreements will not be right for you. Instead, you should be using the correct alternative tenancy agreement.
Renters’ Rights Bill
The Renters' Rights Bill is expected to come into force in summer 2025, making the most significant changes to the private rented sector in over 30 years.
Amongst other things, the Bill will -
• Abolish Section 21;
• Change the type of tenancy you can offer;
• Introduce a new Decent Homes Standard to the PRS;
• Change advertising practices; and
• Significantly strengthen local authority enforcement powers.
The advice and resources on this page will be outdated once the Bill comes into force. The NRLA is currently preparing a suite of replacement guides and documents to help you manage the transition smoothly.
For further information on the passage of the Bill and its details, please see our dedicated campaigns hub.
Purchase your NRLA Individual Room Assured Shorthold Tenancy Agreement today for just £9.50
Gain total peace of mind that your tenancy agreement complies with all relevant legislation. Not only that, but if there any updates to our tenancy agreement following your purchase, you'll have 90 days to access the updated version via your guest membership.
Includes completion instructions.
