Our tenancy and management agreements were written for fixed terms

Written for portfolio landlords, letting and managing agents, HMO operators and short-let operators in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

The short version

1. Strip out fixed terms and rent review clauses.An English assured tenancy signed since 1 May 2026 is periodic, so these clauses have no effect. Only a section 13 notice moves the rent.
2. Remove every payment tenants cannot be charged.Referencing, admin, check-out or renewal fees, deposits over the cap, rent in advance beyond the first month. Refund fees and extra rent before anything else.
3. Close the gaps in management agreements.Before signing, agree a spending limit, who handles each compliance duty and which fees run on periodic tenancies. A solicitor redrafts flagged clauses.

Most lettings paperwork was drafted for fixed terms, break clauses and renewals. In England an assured tenancy signed since 1 May 2026 is periodic, so much of that wording now does nothing, and some of it now breaks the rules. Section 21 was abolished on the same date, and "AST" is the wrong label for a new English let: it is an assured periodic tenancy, and the rent moves only by section 13.

Tenancy agreement red flags (England)

• A fixed term, break clause or rent review clause: no effect. The tenancy is periodic and only a section 13 notice moves the rent.
• Tenant-paid referencing, admin, check-out or renewal fees: Tenant Fees Act breaches. Refund them before anything else.
• A deposit above 5 weeks' rent, or 6 weeks' where annual rent is £50,000 or more: also a breach. As of Oct 2026.
• A guarantor deed tied to a fixed term that no longer exists: check it covers a periodic tenancy, or redraft it.
• A head lease of the flat that bans subletting, short lets or pets: the superior landlord's consent clause governs how you answer a tenant's request.
• A company let, or a let over £100,000 a year, drafted as an assured tenancy, or the reverse to avoid the rules: wrong regime, and a solicitor redrafts it. As of Oct 2026.

The paperwork every new English let now needs: for a new assured tenancy, give the tenant the written statement of the prescribed terms and information before the tenancy is entered into. Written-information breaches expose the agent as well as the landlord, with penalties up to £7,000. As of Oct 2026.

Rent in advance beyond the first month is not allowed on an assured tenancy, so the lump sum creates a refund duty, not security.

Management agreement red flags

Renegotiate before signing any management agreement with no spending limit, no allocation of compliance duties, or the agent's liability excluded entirely. A sound schedule sets out the services and fees with VAT, the spending limit, which compliance duties sit with whom, the client money terms, notice, and which fees run while a tenancy continues as periodic.

Allocating a task in the agreement does not shield the agent. In England an agent can face a penalty of up to £40,000 as a "person managing" an unlicensed property, whatever the management agreement says about who applies for the licence. As of Oct 2026.

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More for property management and rentals in the UK

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