For Tenants
Tenant Terms Of BusinessUpdated For The Renters’ Rights Act 2025
What you pay, what you get, and what each of us has to do — from the day you reserve the property to the day your deposit comes back. The document you sign says the same things; this page is here so you can read them before you do.
On This Page
- The money, up front and honestly
- Reserving a property
- Moving in
- The security deposit
- Rent, and when it can go up
- Your tenancy agreement
- Ending your tenancy
- Change of sharer
- Utilities and the Home Setup Service
- Your data, and how we reach you
- Stamp Duty, and if something goes wrong
- Everything we are allowed to charge you
Before Anything Else
The Money, Up Front And HonestlyThere Are No Hidden Fees; The Law Does Not Allow Them
The Tenant Fees Act 2019 limits what an agent may charge a tenant. We charge no admin fee, no referencing fee, no inventory fee and no renewal fee. Everything we are allowed to charge you is on one page, at the end of this one.
The holding deposit. It comes off your security deposit, or off your first month’s rent if you prefer — just tell us in writing.
Six weeks where the annual rent is £50,000 or more. That is the legal cap and we do not exceed it.
From paying the holding deposit, unless we agree a longer deadline with you in writing.
Please read the terms carefully. It may commit you to certain actions and obligations. If you are unsure of your legal rights, consult a housing advice centre, a solicitor or Citizens Advice.
All tenants must sign the declaration where indicated, through our document signing system. No application is binding until all tenants, and guarantors where applicable, have signed the Assured Periodic Tenancy agreement. On signature you are legally bound by its terms.
Who We Are Answerable To
We are members of the Property Redress Scheme and subscribe to its conditions of membership. We are also a member of Client Money Protect, a government-approved Client Money Protection scheme. Details of our membership are available on request.
Step One
Reserving A PropertyThe Holding Deposit, And When You Lose It
To reserve a property and have it marked as Under Offer, you must pay a holding deposit equal to one week’s rent.
Within 15 calendar days of paying it — the “Deadline for Agreement” — you must pass referencing and sign the Tenancy Agreement and any Deed of Guarantee. This deadline can be extended by mutual written agreement between you and the landlord, or the landlord’s agent.
Under the Tenant Fees Act 2019, the landlord may retain your holding deposit only if you:
- withdraw from the proposed tenancy;
- fail a Right to Rent check;
- provide false or misleading information that the landlord is reasonably entitled to take into account; or
- fail to sign the Tenancy Agreement, and any Deed of Guarantee, by the Deadline for Agreement.
If the holding deposit is retained, the landlord must give you written reasons within 7 days of the decision, or within 7 days of the Deadline for Agreement, whichever is earlier.
In every other circumstance — including where the landlord or agent withdraws the property, or the application cannot proceed for reasons that are not your fault — the holding deposit is refunded in full within 7 days. The holding deposit is security for the landlord and will be refunded should the landlord not proceed for any reason.
If the tenancy goes ahead, the holding deposit is applied towards the security deposit. If you would prefer it to go towards your first month’s rent instead, tell us in writing before the tenancy commences.
Step Two
Moving InFour Things That Must Be Done First
Move-in dates will be agreed between you, the landlord and an inventory clerk who will conduct the check-in if one has been arranged.
- all necessary payments have been paid in full and cleared funds received into our bank account;
- all references have been completed and applicants confirmed as suitable by the independent referencing agency;
- all tenants and guarantors have signed the necessary legal documentation before the commencement of the tenancy, that is, before taking up authorised occupancy;
- copies of passports and visas, where required, have been provided to complete the Right to Rent checks.
The Inventory
If instructed, the check-in takes place at the property. An independent inventory clerk prepares the inventory on or before the move-in date, and you will be sent it by email within 5 days of moving in.
You then have 7 days from receipt to raise any queries or disagreements on the inventory or the condition of the property, for resolution with us or the landlord depending on the service chosen. If we or the landlord do not hear from you within 7 days, it will be assumed there are no disputes or discrepancies.
Keys
Each tenant is given one set of keys. Any further sets must be ordered in advance, at your expense and provided the landlord gives written consent. All sets of keys must be returned at the end of the tenancy.
Insurance — A Word Of Warning
The landlord’s insurance does not cover your contents or possessions. You should consider a tenants’ contents insurance policy that includes public liability cover and protection for the landlord’s fixtures and fittings against accidental damage. You can discuss this with our Home Setup Service partner as part of the service offered.
Your Money
The Security DepositCapped By Law, Protected By A Scheme, Never Ours To Keep
After you have signed the Tenancy Agreement and before the tenancy commences, you must pay the security deposit in cleared funds. Under the Tenant Fees Act 2019 the deposit is capped at:
Where the annual rent is less than £50,000.
Where the annual rent is £50,000 or more.
Where It Is Held
The deposit is protected in one of the three government-approved tenancy deposit protection schemes — MyDeposits, the Deposit Protection Service, or the Tenancy Deposit Scheme. We will confirm which scheme has been used, and whether the deposit is held under a custodial arrangement, held by the scheme, or an insured arrangement, held by the landlord or agent and insured by the scheme.
Where we hold the deposit, it is protected with MyDeposits. Where the landlord holds it themselves — for example on a let-only service — it is protected with one of the three schemes. Your Tenancy Agreement and the Prescribed Information document given to you at the start of the tenancy will confirm which.
In accordance with the Housing Act 2004, your deposit will be protected and the Prescribed Information about the protection provided to you within 30 calendar days of our receipt of it.
Getting It Back
At the end of the tenancy the deposit is returned to you, less any agreed deductions for damage beyond fair wear and tear, unpaid rent, or other outstanding costs the landlord is entitled to recover under the Tenancy Agreement. It is returned by bank transfer within 10 working days of you and the landlord agreeing the deductions. You must provide your bank details promptly to enable this.
If there is a dispute about deductions, the deposit remains protected while the matter is resolved through the scheme’s free dispute resolution service, or through the courts if either party prefers. Each scheme operates its own process and timelines may vary slightly.
MyDeposits — mydeposits.co.uk · The Deposit Protection Service — depositprotection.com · Tenancy Deposit Scheme — tenancydepositscheme.com
During The Tenancy
RentPaying It, And When It Can Go Up
Rental Payments
We will ask you to set up one standing order mandate directly with your bank for the total rent payable per calendar month, payable monthly in advance, before the tenancy commences. The mandate should be dated at least three days before the rent due date, to allow funds to clear into our account on the due date and avoid unnecessary late payment charges.
It is your responsibility to check that your bank has received instructions to make payment for the entire term of the tenancy. We cannot be held responsible for late payment caused by your bank not receiving instructions.
The rent payable will not be more than the advertised amount.
Rental Increases
Your landlord can only increase the rent once in any 12-month period, and the first increase cannot take effect within 52 weeks of the start of the tenancy. The landlord must propose any increase using the procedure in section 13 of the Housing Act 1988, as amended by the Renters’ Rights Act 2025, by serving a notice in the prescribed form, and must give you at least 2 months’ notice of the proposed new rent.
If you believe the proposed rent is above the open market rent, you may refer the proposal to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber), which will determine the open market rent for the property.
If any rent remains unpaid 14 days or more after the due date, simple interest will be charged at 3% per annum above the Bank of England base rate in force on the date the rent fell due. Interest accrues daily from the 15th day after the due date until the outstanding rent, together with accrued interest, is paid in full.
This is the only charge that may be made for late payment of rent, in accordance with the Tenant Fees Act 2019.
During The Tenancy
Your Tenancy AgreementNo Fixed Term Any More, And How You End It
Tenancy agreements no longer have a fixed term. They run as periodic tenancies, from month to month. There is no six or twelve-month lock-in any more.
Ending Your Tenancy
If you want to end your tenancy you must give your landlord at least 2 months’ written notice. The notice must be timed so the tenancy ends on a rent due date, or the day before — it cannot end partway through a rental period. You must continue to pay rent during the notice period.
A shorter notice period can be agreed in writing between you and your landlord, but only if all joint tenants, where applicable, consent.
Services And Information
Utilities, Your Data, And How We Reach YouWhat You Pay For, And Who We Tell
You are liable for all payments for gas, electricity, water, cable services, TV licence, telephone charges and any other utilities and supplies to the property.
The Home Setup Service
All tenants receive, at no extra charge, our Home Setup Service: arranging change of occupation notifications for council tax and utilities, and setting up optional services such as broadband, TV, phone and insurance, or where requested other home or move-related needs such as contents insurance, storage or removals.
The Home Setup Service is provided on our behalf by Ethical Introductions Limited (trading as Just Move In) and/or Help The Move. Both will receive your personal data — name, contact details, tenancy start date and property address — for the purpose of providing the service, and may contact you by telephone, text or email. You may decline any additional service. If you would prefer not to receive the Home Setup Service at all, notify us in writing before the start of your tenancy.
Data Protection
We will only use your personal data for the purposes for which it has been provided, or for other lawful purposes. It will be held only as long as necessary for those purposes and will not be passed to any third parties unless required for the performance of our services to you, or by law. Employees and any third parties we engage are obliged to respect the confidentiality of your personal data and to comply with all obligations imposed on them under UK data protection legislation.
As part of our service, your personal data will be shared with our Home Setup Service partners — Ethical Introductions Limited and/or Help The Move — both of whom act as separate data controllers of the personal data they receive for that purpose.
For further details, including our lawful bases for processing, retention periods and your rights as a data subject, see our Privacy Notice.
Communication
We obtain your contact details at the beginning of your application. If they change during the tenancy it is your obligation to tell us without delay. Before and during your tenancy we will usually communicate by phone, email and text message. Where the Tenancy Agreement permits, formal notices may also be served by email and will have legal effect from the time specified in the Tenancy Agreement.
Your personal information will not be shared with third parties except where necessary for the performance of the tenancy, for property management purposes, to comply with legal obligations, or where you have requested or authorised it. This may include sharing information with your landlord, approved third-party service providers including our Home Setup Service partners, utility providers and relevant local authorities.
Two More Things
Stamp Duty, And If Something Goes WrongOne Tax You Do Not Pay, And One List You Can Hold Us To
Stamp Duty Land Tax
SDLT does not apply to the rent element of assured tenancies. HM Treasury confirmed on 22 April 2026 that legislation will be introduced retrospectively from 1 May 2026 to put this beyond doubt, and HMRC is not collecting SDLT on assured tenancy rents in the interim.
Complaints Handling Procedure
If you have a complaint about our services, raise it with us in the first instance by writing to info@elementproperties.co.uk, so we have the opportunity to investigate and resolve it. All complaints are handled in accordance with our Complaints Handling Procedure, available on request and on our website. We will acknowledge and respond within the timescales set out in that policy.
If you remain dissatisfied following our final response, or if eight weeks have passed since the complaint was first made, you may refer the matter to our independent redress provider:
7th Floor Corn Exchange, 55 Mark Lane, London EC3R 7NE
0333 321 9418 · theprs.co.uk — any referral must be made within 12 months of our final response.
Fees And Payments
Everything We Are Allowed To Charge YouAs Permitted Under The Tenant Fees Act 2019
There is nothing else.
To reserve the property. It comes off your deposit, or your first month’s rent if you prefer.
The legal cap. Protected in a government scheme and returned less any agreed deductions.
Or our reasonable cost if higher, itemised and told to you first.
Plus the full cost of the lock and new keys if locks must be changed.
From the 15th day after the due date. No other late payment charge exists.
No admin fee, no referencing fee, no inventory fee, no renewal fee.
Our Regulatory Memberships
- The Property Redress Scheme — government-approved redress scheme
- Client Money Protect — client money protection scheme
- Information Commissioner’s Office — registered data controller (ZA242204)
If Something Goes Wrong
Please tell us first. Our Complaints Handling Procedure sets out how we will acknowledge, investigate and respond, and your right to refer the matter to The Property Redress Scheme if you remain dissatisfied.
Looking For A Home?
Tell Us What You Are AfterAnd We Will Tell You What Is Coming Up
Our available properties are online, and the ones that are not yet are usually on their way.
This page summarises our Tenant Terms of Business for information. The document you sign is the binding one — it carries the property, the applicants, the rent, the deposit and the breakdown of funds for your tenancy, and all tenants sign it through our document signing system.
These terms apply to the letting of a residential property through Element Properties & Co and govern the relationship between you, the landlord or landlords of the property as named in the Tenancy Agreement, and Element Properties Alexandra Park Ltd, trading as Element Properties & Co, who are instructed by the landlord to let and, where applicable, manage the property.
Element Properties Alexandra Park Ltd, trading as Element Properties & Co. Registered in England and Wales, company number 10351289. Registered office: 26 Palace Gates Road, London, N22 7BN. Members of the Property Redress Scheme and Client Money Protect. ICO registration ZA242204.
Tenant Terms of Business, version 2026.1 — in effect from 1 May 2026.