Assured shorthold tenancy agreement (AST): unfurnished house  

About this assured shorthold tenancy agreement

Most houses and flats are let using an assured shorthold tenancy agreement (commonly referred to as an AST) such as this one.

This document has been written by a barrister, who specialises in residential tenancy law. It is a long form version of a tenancy agreement, drawn to give the landlord maximum control over the terms of the tenancy. At just short of 2,000 words in plain English, this agreement will reduce the grounds for complaints and misunderstandings with your tenants because your legal position will be fully covered.

The law in this tenancy agreement

There are many assured shorthold tenancy agreements on the Internet, varying in price and quality. Most are short form, around 500 words (a quarter of the size of this one), and cover only the basic terms to create a tenancy. As a landlord, you will know that the purpose of an agreement is to protect you against whatever might go wrong. The more comprehensive a tenancy agreement is, the more it defines rights (in this agreement, favouring you as a landlord) and leaves less room for subjective interpretation by your tenant or a judge.

This assured shorthold tenancy agreement complies with the Housing Act 1988, the Housing Act 1996 and the Tenancy Deposit Protection Scheme introduced in April 2007.

When to use this assured shorthold tenancy agreement

This agreement should be used by a landlord wishing to rent one or more houses under the following circumstances. It is ideal for buy-to-let, and can be reused for multiple properties.

• Rent between £1,000 and £100,000 per year
• Short tenancy period: 6 months to a maximum of 6 years
• One or more tenants jointly responsible for paying the whole rent
• The tenant(s) is a private individual and not a company
• The whole house will be let to one or more tenants under a single agreement
• The property will be used for residential purposes only (not business or agriculture)
• Only the tenants will live in the house (the landlord will live elsewhere)

The tenancy agreement holds the tenants jointly and severally liable for the tenancy (all tenants are jointly responsible for payment of rent and not individual shares).

Tenancy agreement features and contents

• Basic provisions common to all assured shorthold tenancy agreements
• Guarantor: essential if tenant is not in full employment
• Agent: should the landlord wish to appoint someone to act on his behalf
• Rent: by default paid monthly in advance, but the terms can be changed
• Deposit by tenant
• Deposit Protection Details (provisions in line with the Deposit Protection Regulations)
• Landlord's access: to view or show prospective lenders or buyers
• Landlord's choice of 30 tenant's “promises” setting out what tenant can and cannot do
• Includes sensible, practical provisions
• Fair to both parties but drawn primarily to protect the interest of the landlord.  It is for a tenant to challenge those paragraphs which may not suit his circumstances

Other versions of this assured shorthold tenancy agreement

We have four versions of this assured shorthold tenancy agreement. This one covers an unfurnished house. Options also include agreements for furnished properties and for flats:

Assured shorthold tenancy agreement (AST): furnished house (Also suitable for part-furnished houses)

Assured shorthold tenancy agreement (AST): unfurnished flat

Assured shorthold tenancy agreement (AST): furnished flat (Also suitable for part-furnished flats)

As well as providing this as a Word format template that you complete yourself, we offer a web based drafting service that will create an assured shorthold tenancy agreement for you without you needing to consider the legal aspects of letting.  The final document that the service produces uses the same legal wording as this one (this agreement has been drafted using the same master document that the web based service uses) and, just like this agreement, you have the flexibility to edit it in Word later. The difference is in the time it takes to produce your agreement. Using the service, you could have your final agreement in your hands in 15 minutes. The price is very comparable. For more information, visit residential tenancy agreement drafting service.

Reasons to buy from Net Lawman

Full money back guarantee – buy with confidence
This assured shorthold tenancy agreement comes with a no questions asked full money back guarantee. You take no risk that it might not be right. Once you buy it, we’ll give you 30 days to evaluate it in any way you want. If for any reason you’re not happy, just e-mail us and we’ll refund your money in full immediately.

Guidance notes included - prior legal knowledge is not required
Comprehensive guidance notes, written by the author of the tenancy agreement, are included. These notes ensure that you don’t need to be a lawyer or have knowledge of the law to understand which paragraphs you should edit to complete the agreement.

Minimal editing required
This agreement has been written specifically in such a way that you don’t need to spend hours editing it. It uses an approach where you remove the sections that aren’t applicable to you, so you don’t have to add any back, write your own, or worry about whether you are using correct legal language.

Paragraphs have been written to stand alone from each other. Removing one that isn’t applicable to your circumstances doesn’t affect the standing of any other in the tenancy agreement.

Plain language minimises future disagreements
Your assured shorthold tenancy agreement is real law written in plain language that all parties will understand. This will minimise the likelihood of later disputes and makes it so much easier to edit. If a dispute does arise and you find yourself in court, the judge will look more favourably on a legal agreement written in plain language over one peppered with complicated legal jargon. Your case will be stronger if it is clear that both sides understood the agreement when it was signed.

Buy once – re-use again and again
You can use the tenancy agreement as many times as you like – just create a new document from the master version.

Delivered straight to your inbox
As soon as you complete the secure checkout process, we will send your assured shorthold tenancy agreement straight to your inbox. We will also keep a copy for you for 60 days in our customer area so you can access it even when you are away from your e-mail.

Still unsure whether this is the right document for you?
If you are unsure whether this assured shorthold tenancy agreement is suitable for your particular circumstances, then you have two options. The first is to buy now, evaluate the agreement, and use the 30 day, full money back guarantee to obtain a refund if it isn’t suitable. You take no risk in seeing the agreement. The second option is to contact us and ask. We can’t offer you legal advice on your situation, but we can help you find the document you want. We aim to respond to your question within 24 hours.