6 Obligations Landlords Must Know

Renting out a property comes with a lot of legal responsibilities. Here are some obligations landlords must know about:

Right to rent.

Did you know landlords and agents are legally required to check the tenant’s right to rent. This can be seen as a passport (and visa) control before renting a property. All tenants must be checked, not just those from overseas.

EPC.

Landlords/agents are responsible to get an energy performance certificate for the property. This certificate indicates the property’s energy use, and makes recommendations on how to reduce energy usage and increase efficiency.

Gas Safety Check.

A gas safety check is done once a year to inspect any gas appliances in a property to make sure they are working efficiently and safely. This is not the tenants responsibilities either, therefore landlords/agent must arrange a gas inspection every single year.

Smoke/Carbon Monoxide Alarms.

Alarms are installed and mandatory to detect both fires as early as possible to give the occupants time to leave a building, and to warn occupants about any presence of carbon monoxide gas, which is known as the silent killer.

ECIR.

Same as with gas, an electrical inspection is done to make sure everything is installed properly and safely. This Electrical Installation Condition Report is normally valid for 5 years, or a shorter time frame if the inspector deems it necessary.

Deposit protection.

Deposits are protected by law, to keep your money safe and make sure you get back what you are owed at the end of your tenancy.

As a landlord, have you got everything under control?