The Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government issued a press release which confirmed that the emergency measures for tenants were finally to be relaxed albeit in a phased approach.
It confirmed that from 1 June 2021 the time period for Section 21 Notices and in some cases of rent arrears under s 8 Notices, will reduce to 4 months.
Our previous update commented on the fact the Press Release information was unclear on the question of Notice periods where the arrears were 4 or more months’ rent. That has now been cleared up.
From 1 June 2021 where the ground for the Possession Order is based on at least 4 months unpaid rent; Landlords only need to give 4 weeks’ notice.
Notices for cases where there are less than 4 months’ rent arrears, will from 1 June 2021 require Landlords to give 4 months’ Notice, but that reduces to 2 months for Notices issued from and including 1 August 2021.
This will not impact the time scale for Notices already served. Landlords are still able to apply shorter notice periods if the ground for possession is based on anti-social behaviour, domestic violence and fraud.
Our Dispute Resolution Team will continue to provide updates and can be contacted on [email protected] or 01276 686222.
