The Renting Homes (Wales) Act was initially passed by the Welsh Government in 2016.
On 1st December 2022, the Act came fully into force, with the aim of simplifying the existing tenancy legislation, making it easier and more secure for individuals to rent a home in Wales. The Act has transformed how landlords deal with residential occupation agreements, as the previous systems of Assured Shorthold Tenancies (“AST”) and licences have now been overhaled.
Yes, whilst the Court’s jurisdiction relates to England & Wales as one entity, there is now a separate system and parallel rules for residential tenancies in England and Wales.
Tenants are known as ‘contract-holders’ in Wales and tenancy agreements have been replaced with ‘occupation contracts’, which are effectively a written agreement setting out the terms of the tenancy. These new occupation contracts govern all tenancies granted in Wales on or after 1 December 2022. The process and court rules relating to possession claims also differ between England and Wales.
It is highly important that RHW notices are prepared and sent strictly in accordance with the new legislation.
Failure to satisfy the provisions of the legislation can result in the notice being deemed invalid and being unable to take legal action.
There are a number of reasons why landlords might need to evict a contract-holder, through no fault of the contract-holder (e.g. when the landlord’s wishes to sell the property or undertake major work).
The previous ‘section 21 notice’ or ‘no fault’ system has been replaced with the procedure under section 173 of the Act and ‘RHW16 notices’.
Now a notice cannot be given until six months after the contract has started and must give at least 6 months’ notice.
Landlord break clauses are only included in occupation contracts which have a fixed term of two years or more, and the Landlord will not be able to exercise a break clause within the first 18 months.
Assuming the landlord is compliant with the Act and the surrounding regulation, they will be able to utilise an accelerated court procedure.
However, a RHW 16 notice cannot be relied upon if the Landlord is in breach of the Act or has not followed the new regulations relating to the condition of the property.
Whilst the Act has granted more time for tenants for ‘non-fault’ claims, it has created a quicker process for when there is a serious breach of the contract.
The previous ‘section 8 notice’ system has been replaced with the procedure under section 173 of the Act and ‘RHW20 notices’.
If a fault ground is being claimed (usually rent arrears or antisocial behaviour) the landlord will need to issue a notice and give at least 14 days to the contract-holder to remedy the breach.
If the problems remain, a claim is then issued via the standard possession procedure. Here the Court will have a hearing to determine if the contract has been breached and if there are sufficient grounds for possession and consider any defence put forward.
Yes, all rented properties in Wales must be fit for human habitation and the threshold will be based on the current Housing Health and Safety Rating System.
The Courts are particularly focused on seeking to prohibit retaliatory evictions, where a landlord only seeks to serve a termination notice once a tenant has complained about the condition of the property.
In all occupation contracts, landlords will be required to keep the structure and exterior of the property in repair as well as keeping utility installations and mains powered fire alarms in proper working order.
There are also rules relating to rent deposits, compliance certificates, fees, notices, licencing and registration that must be adhered to ensure that possession can take place.
Usually within 14 days of the court making the order, but this can be extended for up to 42 days if the court finds that the person will suffer hardship by having to leave in 14 days.
Yes, it is imperative that a landlord follows the correct procedure and obtains a court order before attending the property.
The landlord should ensure that Court bailiffs or authorised High Court Enforcement Officers attend to deal with any residential eviction. It will be a criminal office to seek to remove a residential tenant without complying with the appropriate rules.
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