So you’ve found the place that you want to live, it’s perfect, but where do you go from here? Signing the contract and the processes around that are probably the most confusing part of renting a room or home, so here is the process broken down for you.
Right to Rent
Before you sign your contract, you might be asked to provide some identification such as a driving licence or 
passport to prove that you have the right to live in the UK. Be aware that landlords or letting agents in England are required to do this for all prospective adult occupiers to ensure they have the legal right to rent.
Here at Bespoke we generally require these documents from you to be able to let you rent one of our rooms:
- Photo ID – Ideally a Passport or Driving license.
- Your three last pay slips – This is so we can have an understanding of your average earnings s we know you can afford the room
- Last three months of bank statements – Again just to verify that you can afford the room. We don’t need to know what you have bought, just your net gain or loss over the month.
If you are self employed, it is slightly different – we ask for 6 months of bank statements and any remittance invoices you can provide. Again, this is just to ensure you can afford the room and are getting regular reliable payments into your account.
The contract
The most frequently issued type of contract is an Assured Shorthold Tenancy (AST). This type of contract usually names all listed tenants as “jointly and severally liable” – which means that you are all legally responsible for all of the rent.
AST contains a lot of crucial information, such as the length of the agreement, notice period and areas where you are responsible as a tenant. For example, it should tell you who is responsible for sourcing contents insurance. Although you should have outlined your ‘non-negotiables’ and checked these with the letting agent before beginning your search, make sure the contract is reflective of anything that was verbally agreed.
Remember to look at who will be managing the property to see whether you’ll be dealing with a letting agent or landlord. The contract should also contain emergency contact details should there be an urgent problem.
If you are unsure about any part of the tenancy agreement, or want to view the AST before you sign or view a property, please ask as we can always answer any questions or let you see a copy beforehand.
The essentials
Make sure you are given:
- A copy of your new home’s Gas Safety Certificate
- Energy Performance Certificate (EPC)
- The Government’s How to Rent Guide
- The Prescribed Information which is included in the ATS (this may take a few days)
- Any licence issued by the local authority (if the property is subject to any form of local authority landlord licensing scheme).
We will also provide you with a host of information regarding your room, including contact numbers for the letting agent and out of hours service all the ay down to the WiFi password! All of this is guaranteed to be discussed and given to you upon you signing the tenancy agreement.
The Fees
Legally, we cannot charge any agency fees before renting the property – here at Bespoke we 
don’t even hold a deposit for the duration of your tenancy. All we ask for is the first part of the rent when you move into the property – for example the first two weeks of rent is to be paid on the first day in the property, with the normal weekly payment to start from the third week in the property.
Professional Inventory
Before you move in, we shall complete an inventory which records the property’s condition. We will take dated photos of any damage, even small marks on carpets or walls. With this in mind, it’s important to let us know of any damages as soon as you notice them both to prevent the issue potentially getting worse and to be able to correctly identify how the damage occurred.
Once all the paperwork is complete, you can collect the keys from the letting agent and move into your new home!