Getting started
Once you have viewed the property and arrived at a decision to make an application to proceed with a rental we require:
All applicants to complete a referencing/application form. You will be required to provide personal details including your name, address, occupation, and salary.
We pass your information to an external referencing company and will only be able to agree to a tenancy subject to satisfactory replies from the searches made. The referencing company will seek to establish your financial credibility and will make contact with your previous Landlord/Agent and employer or accountant. These are routine procedures taken to protect all parties.
Should you have County Court Judgements registered against you it may prove difficult to grant you a tenancy unless satisfactory evidence of the clearance of debt is produced prior to the commencement of the tenancy.
If you are granted a tenancy because of the information you have provided, which subsequently proves to be false, you may be committing an offence and your tenancy may be at risk. Hence it is vitally important to provide accurate information.
Should you be unable to provide satisfactory references or credit checks, you may still be offered a tenancy subject to a suitable Guarantor being provided. The Guarantor will need to provide satisfactory references and credit checks and will be expected to sign a form to guarantee your legal commitments in the tenancy, including payment of rent. You will only be offered a tenancy of the property, subject to the above requirements and the terms of the tenancy agreement, the payment of the application fee, the deposit, the agreed advanced rent, and the Landlord’s agreement that the tenancy can proceed.
To support your application, you will need to provide us with a copy of a current passport and proof of right of residency, if applicable.
As the tenant(s) you should satisfy yourself as to the contents and the amount of furniture being provided by the landlord , if applicable. You should make you’re your own enquiries as to telephone, internet, television reception etc. Most Flats/Apartments have a clause in the Head Lease prohibiting installation of satellite dishes and most do not allow pets. Properties are taken as seen unless otherwise specified.
Inventory
At the beginning of the tenancy the landlord normally commissions an independent inventory clerk to prepare and inventory of the property. The inventory clerk will then meet you at the check in date and run through the inventory with you and take the opening meter readings. The inventory is then sent to you, and you have 7 days from the day the inventory is sent to you to add or dispute any points in the inventory.
The landlord pays for the inventory, the check in and check out.
End of the term
At the end of the term, you should prepare to hand the property back to the Landlord/Agent on the Check-out date. A mutually convenient appointment will be made with the Inventory Clerk, who will meet you at the property, take meter readings, collect keys, and ensure that we have your forwarding address for the payment of all closing accounts. Under no circumstances should you allow the authorities to disconnect supplies.
The authorities should be informed that the managing agent will contact them when the property is handed over and provide details of the new account holder.
This may be the owner or a new tenant.
Inventory items should be placed in their respective rooms to facilitate easy checking on handing over. Carefully read the inventory/statement of condition that you received at commencement of your tenancy as this will be a benchmark as to the condition expected at the check-out. Carpets and soft furnishings should be cleaned to a professional standard if done so at the start of your tenancy and this will be clarified when you move in. Liaise with us and arrange a convenient time for handing over the premises. We can recommend local trades people to carry out all cleaning/preparation if required.
Summary of Fees to Tenants
As well as paying the agreed monthly rent in advance, you will also be required to make the following permitted payments to Eltze Estates ‘the Agent.’
- Holding deposit: A holding deposit of £175.00 is payable capped at no more than 1 week’s rent and is offset against the first month’s rent if the tenancy proceeds. The holding deposit may be retained by Eltze Estates ‘the Agent’, if the applicant; fails the reference process, provides false or misleading information that would affect the Landlords decision to grant the tenancy, the applicant withdraws from the tenancy or the applicant fails to take all reasonable steps to enter into the tenancy agreement.
- Rent: The first and subsequent rents are payable in advance.
- Security deposit: The security deposit is equivalent to five weeks’ rent.
During the tenancy, the following payments are payable to Eltze Estates ‘the Agent’.
- Changes to the agreement: Payment of up to £48 including vat if you want to change the tenancy agreement.
- Late rent: An interest charge for late payment is calculated at a rate of 3% per annum above the Bank of England base rate.
- Lost keys/fobs: Payment of up to £50 including vat per key/fob plus the cost of a locksmith, if required.
Eltze Estates is also a member of the government approved redress scheme The Property Ombudsman that provides redress in the unlikely event of a dispute being unable to be resolved. We are also a member of Money Shield giving peace of mind for landlords and tenants that your money is protected.
Download our MoneyShield Certificate here.
The Renters Rights Act
From 1 May 2026, the Renters’ Rights Act 2025 will give tenants new rights and introduce new rules for private landlords. This information sheet explains how the new rules may affect your current tenancy.
These changes only affect you if you are a tenant in the private rented sector with an assured or assured shorthold tenancy. If you live in social housing or you are a lodger, the new rules will not usually apply to you.
These rules have been introduced by law. Your landlord cannot put anything into a tenancy agreement to change or disapply them.
This document is only a summary of the changes. The new rules may change or impact your tenancy in a way not described below. The new rules apply to your tenancy automatically, even if your landlord does not update your tenancy agreement.
If you do not have a written tenancy agreement or any written record of the tenancy’s terms, then your landlord must provide you with certain written information on or before 31 May 2026.
If your landlord serves you a notice seeking possession before 1 May 2026
The changes explained in this document may not apply to your tenancy on 1 May 2026 if your landlord serves a notice seeking possession under section 8 or section 21 of the Housing Act 1988 before 1 May 2026.
If this happens, your landlord may still be able to take you to court to end your tenancy under the previous rules. You should seek advice if this happens to you.
Changes to fixed terms
You might have a fixed term tenancy. For example, your tenancy agreement may say the tenancy would last for 12 months.
After 1 May 2026, it will not be possible for assured tenancy agreements to have a fixed term or a set end date. All tenancies will automatically become rolling tenancies from 1 May 2026 (sometimes known as ‘periodic tenancies’).
Your tenancy will continue on a rolling basis. This will usually be monthly, unless your tenancy agreement sets out a shorter period, for example weekly or fortnightly. If your tenancy had an end date, it will no longer apply.
Your tenancy will continue until:
- you and your landlord decide together to end the tenancy
- you end your tenancy by giving notice
- your landlord ends it, if they have a valid legal reason
Change to the name of Assured Shorthold Tenancies
Your tenancy agreement might call your tenancy an ‘Assured Shorthold Tenancy’. This is the name of the private rented tenancy system until 1 May 2026.
Assured Shorthold Tenancies will be abolished on 1 May 2026. Any tenancy previously called an Assured Shorthold Tenancy will automatically become an Assured Periodic Tenancy instead. Your tenancy will not end because of this change.
Increasing the rent
Your tenancy agreement may contain rent review clauses. These are terms in the agreement that allow the landlord to increase the rent.
Rent review clauses cannot be used for new rent increases after 1 May 2026. If you have a rent review clause in your current tenancy agreement, it will not apply after this date.
Landlords must instead use the process in section 13 of the Housing Act 1988 for increasing the rent. This means they can only increase the rent once per year. They will need to give you written notice of the proposed rent increase at least 2 months before that increase would take effect, using a form called Form 4A.
Any rent increase must be no higher than the open market rent. If you think the proposed increase is above market rate, you can challenge it at the First-tier Tribunal.
If your landlord wants to end your tenancy
Your tenancy agreement may say that your landlord can evict you without a reason. This was known as a section 21 eviction. Your landlord cannot give you a section 21 notice on or after 1 May 2026, even if your tenancy agreement says they can.
Instead, your landlord will need a legal reason to evict you. These reasons are called grounds for possession.
Below is a brief summary of some of the main reasons your landlord may legally seek to evict you. You can find full details of these and other grounds on GOV.UK.
- If you have not paid your rent on time
- If you, others living with you, or visitors commit antisocial behaviour in or near the property
- If you, or others living with you, do not care for the property properly
- If your tenancy was for certain purposes, for example it was connected to your employment, or was for temporary or supported accommodation
You cannot be required to leave under some grounds for the first 12 months of a tenancy. These are:
- if your landlord intends to sell the property
- if your landlord or their family member wants to move into the property
Your landlord will need to give you a section 8 notice of seeking possession, using 1 or more of the grounds for possession.
A section 8 notice must state the date by which your landlord is asking you to leave. They must give you the required amount of time under each ground.
If you have not left by the end of the notice period, your landlord will need to apply to court to get the property back. This is called applying for a possession order.
At court, the landlord must provide evidence that they have a valid reason to evict you. You will have the opportunity to explain why you think your landlord does not have a legal reason to evict you, or why eviction is not reasonable under certain grounds.
You can access free legal advice through the Housing Loss Prevention Advice Service1 before going to court and on the day of the court hearing.
If you want to end the tenancy
You will be able to end the tenancy at any point by giving your landlord notice. This must be done:
- so the tenancy ends on a day when the rent is due or the day before the rent is due
- in writing, for example, by letter or email
You will need to give your landlord at least 2 months’ notice. You can agree a shorter notice period with the landlord in writing, as long as any other tenants named on the tenancy agreement also agree.
Keeping a pet
From 1 May 2026, you have the right to request to keep a pet.
Your landlord cannot unreasonably refuse your request. If they refuse, they must inform you in writing, and should tell you the reason why. They will need to consider each request on a case‑by‑case basis. You can challenge the landlord’s decision in court.
If you are a student who rents from a private landlord
If you are a full-time student, your landlord may be able to evict you using possession ground 4A. They will be able to do this at the end of the academic year and must give you 4 months’ notice ending between 1 June and 30 September.
Your landlord can only use this ground if they have previously given you written notice that they may use it. They must give this to you by 31 May 2026, in most cases. This information sheet does not count as that written notice. If your landlord wants to evict you at the end of the 2025/26 academic year, they can serve you a notice seeking possession between 1 May and 30 July 2026 (inclusive). They will need to give this to you with at least 2 months’ notice.