Rent Book Regulations (NI) 2007 Rent Book The address of premises _________________________________________ _________________________________________ _________________________________________
The name of the tenant _________________________________________ _________________________________________ _________________________________________
The name, address and telephone number of the landlord Name Address Tel. No ______________________________________ ______________________________________ ______________________________________ ______________________________________
The name, address and telephone number of the landlords agent (if any) Name Address Tel. No ______________________________________ ______________________________________ ______________________________________ ______________________________________
The rent payable and the period covered by each payment Amount of rent payable: ___________ Period covered by each payment : Monthly Fortnightly Weekly Other:__________________
The capital value of the dwelling
______________
The amount of rates payable by the tenant, in addition to rent, and the period covered by each payment Amount of Rates Payable: ____________ Period covered by each payment : Monthly Fortnightly Weekly Other:__________________
The amount and description of any other payment which the tenant is required to make in addition to rent and rates (for example, In respect of heating) Amount _________ Other Payments__________________________________________________ __________________________________________________
Tenancy commencement date / / 20
RENT PAYMENT Rent ______________
Date Due Amount Due Date Paid Amount Received Account Balance
Per _____________
By Whom Received
Legal rights of all private tenants Rent Book You have a legal right to a rent book, which must be provided by the landlord free of charge. Your district council has powers to take legal action where this requirement is not complied with. Notice to quit A notice to quit must give at least 4 weeks written notice of the date on which it is to take effect. Illegal eviction and harassment It is an offence for your landlord or anyone acting on his behalf to harass you or your household or illegally evict you. This could include interfering with your home or your possessions or cutting of services such as water or electricity with the intention of making you leave your home. Your local district council has powers to take legal action should any of these occur. Security of tenure You cannot be evicted from your tenancy without a possession order issued by a Court of Law, although you may be liable for legal costs incurred if an order is issued. Help with payment of rent and rates You are entitled to apply for help with the payment of your rent and rates through Housing Benefit, which is a Social Security benefit paid by the Housing Executive. For further information contact your local Housing Executive office. Uncontrolled tenancies General You have the protection of the legal rights described in this rent book but other terms and conditions of your tenancy are a matter of agreement between you and your landlord with the exception of repairs and maintenance of gas and electrical appliances and furniture safety which are the responsibility of your landlord. For tenancies starting on or after 01 April 2007 there are additional rights Statement of Tenancy Terms Your landlord by law must provide you with a Statement of Tenancy Terms www.nihe.gov.uk free of charge, within 28 days of the start of the tenancy. Repairs You and your landlord can agree the responsibility to repair, with the exception of gas and electrical appliances and furniture safety which are the responsibility of your landlord. Where the Statement of Tenancy Terms is not clear as to who has responsibility for repairs the law will impose default terms for landlord and tenant repair responsibilities. You may be able to get some help from your local district council for some items of disrepair. Tenancies for a term certain If you do not have a tenancy agreement or the tenancy agreement does not state when the tenancy will end, under the law you have a right to a tenancy that will run for six months initially and after this period it will become a periodic tenancy (e.g. month to month). Further advice If you would like advice or assistance with any problems you are having in relation to your tenancy contact either Housing Rights Service www.housingadviceNI.org telephone (028) 90245640, or Advice NI www.adviceni.net who will give you details of your local advice centre, telephone (028) 90645919, or Citizens Advice Bureau (see phone book for details). You can also contact a solicitor. Help with all or part of the costs of legal advice may be available under the Legal Aid scheme.
