Landlords across Cheshire have been supplied with new documentation that must be used from October 1 onwards.
Eviction notices for tenants throughout the COVID-19 pandemic have been subjected to multiple alterations by the Government, in order to provide security for tenants amidst job losses or the furlough scheme.
Since June 1, most possession notices have required Cheshire landlords to give a minimum of four months' notice if they served their tenants either a Section 8 or Section 21 notice, in all but the most serious cases, including criminal damage to property or domestic abuse cases.
From August 1, new legislation changes meant that notice periods in "non-serious" cases of rent arrears (anything less than four months' absent rent) were reduced to two months' notice.
Now, from October 1 onwards, landlords must serve the new legal paperwork provided by the Government.
The new legislation will mean that both Section 8 and Section 21 notices will return to their pre-pandemic levels, and it is crucial for Cheshire letting agents and landlords to use the new paperwork.
From October 1, the notice period required for Section 8 notices will revert back to only two weeks.
The notice period for Section 21 notices will revert to two months, meaning the earliest opportunity a Cheshire landlord can evict their tenant is at the start of December. Any notices served prior to October 1, however, will still need to comply with the current pandemic levels of legislation.
All new documentation is expected to be uploaded to the Assured Tenancy Form page on the gov.uk website.
If you are a Cheshire landlord and unsure on how best to serve your tenants notice, or want to craft long-lasting tenancies where notice serving need not be conducted, our Cheshire property management team would be more than happy to assist. You can give them a call on 01565 656544.