Landlords and letting agents were banned from charging tenant fees from 1 June when the Tenant Fees Act came into effect.
The new law bans most letting agents’ fees, including those for credit and reference checking, and caps tenancy deposits. The ban applies to new or renewed tenancy agreements signed on or after 1 June.
Landlords and lettings agents are now permitted to charge tenants only for:
- rent;
- a refundable deposit capped at five weeks for rent up to £50,000 a year or six weeks for rent above that;
- a refundable holding deposit of no more than one week’s rent;
- payments associated with early termination of the tenancy;
- payments related to utilities, communication services, TV licence or council tax; and
- fees for late payments or replacing of lost keys.
The proposal for the ban was first introduced by chancellor Philip Hammond in the Autumn Statement 2016. The former minister of state for housing and planning, Alok Sharma, later claimed that the act would result in higher rents.
