Assured Shorthold Tenancy Agreements (AST)

Last updated 16 November - Updated tenancy agreements

What is an assured shorthold tenancy?

The assured shorthold tenancy (AST) is the most common form of agreement in the private rented sector (PRS).

It should be used wherever the following conditions are met -

• The rent is between £250 and £100,000 per annum
• The tenants are people rather than an organisation such as a company
• The property will be the tenant's main home
• The landlord does not live in the same property as the tenant.

This page provides a number of our assured shorthold tenancies, as well as answering some frequently asked questions on what your obligations are when creating an AST.

What ASTs are available to members

To provide as much flexibility as possible to you, NRLA members have access to three different types of assured shorthold tenancy agreement. Each one is suitable for a different situation:

• Joint AST for a family, an individual or two people who are unrelated- this agreement is to be used where you are renting out the entire property using one agreement. this agreement is designed to be used with or without a security deposit.
• Joint AST for a group of sharers - this agreement is for use where you are renting a property to three or more people and at least two of them are unrelated to each other. These type of arrangements are known as houses in multiple occupation (HMO) and have their own specific requirements which the tenancy agreement covers.
• Standard Room-only AST - you should use this agreement if you are renting out your property by the room with or without a security deposit.