Rent a property for one year only?

There is something called a LICENCE TO OCCUPY. We used this in similar circumstances when we only wanted to rent our property for 5 months before we moved in to our rented property after the early expiration of a previous AST. The new people did not want an AST which suited us as well as they were going back to South Africa. They paid the full 5 months rent up front. Suggest you could do 2 x 5 months with rent paid up front for each period. AST rules like section 21 would not apply. I would suggest a 5 month period as no way can it then be classed as an AST which must be 6 months minimum. You may have to discount the rent to get the full payment in advance, I am not legally qualified so please take legal advice.

Reply to the comment left by Dennis Forrest at 14/08/2023 - 14:44Dennis, did you take legal advice on this arrangement?
Licences rarely exist, but the name is frequently used and is meaningless.
I'd be interested to know why the Housing Act did not apply in your case. I'm not aware of any exemptions, having advised on the Act since it came in. BUT every day's a school day so I am intrigued.

I am aware of Licences to Occupy in certain specifi circumstances, but not for letting out an entire house.

Reply to the comment left by Tony Phillips at 14/08/2023 - 14:43
In this case the Company would be the tenant and the person living there would be classed as the occupier.
Company Contracts give les rights to the tenant unlike AST’s.

As I said take legal advice - while there may be advantages to this arrangement to both parties the drawbacks might make it not workable. A suitably qualified solicitor could advise on. The main thing is to avoid creating an AST. It worked for me and I had 5 months extra rent. A short term let might suit some people. Say you want to stay in an area for 3 months while you look around the area with a view to buying a property. Six months might be too long. Or if you are emigrating and got your flights booked and only want 3 or 4 months accommodation.

Reply to the comment left by Dennis Forrest at 14/08/2023 - 16:14
Did you actually have legal advice on your agreement Dennis? If so, was the proeprty part of a larger property (e.g. a granny flat)?

Reply to the comment left by Tony Phillips at 14/08/2023 - 14:43
I rented 12 properties at the same time to Rolls Royce and they were all a standard AST for 12 months, no other contract was possible. I had no control over who moved in or out, however the rent was guaranteed even if the property was empty. RR basically mananged the property themselves.

It would take the best part of a year at the moment to evict a reluctant tenant on a standard AST. Company lets often come with their own issues.You could try a series of holiday let's on Airbnb if you can find someone to service the property between customers.

Dear Robert
Times have changed and our laws and judicial system have gone to the dogs !
Having struggled for 1 yr to evict a trespasser with 12000 pounds upwards in rental arrears my honest advice is not to let your house for renting esp if you plan to move back with your spouse in a years time !

Current scarcity of rental dwellings will result in you and your family staying in the hotel and incurring extra losses like me ! On top of it the whole house , garden , furnitures etc all will be damaged !

If you know someone personally then only rent it otherwise you need to have solid muscle power to act in our own capacity ! No estate agents , police, legal systems, Councils and judiciary won't be there to give you timely help and justice !

This is the real scenario thats enacted across the country ! Until we stop giving free Council houses to rogue foreign tennants this nonsense will never stop !

Reply to the comment left by GlanACC at 14/08/2023 - 18:40
If you rented dirtectly to Rolls Royce then an AST was not the correct agreement. This is an occupational agreement directly between owner and occupier.

Reply to the comment left by Graham Bowcock at 15/08/2023 - 09:26
Likely not, but never had any issues with it. Gues with RR it was a trusted company. They even paid for a gardener and a cleaner