Yeehlow

If you have some experience as tenant or landlord, it’s likely you’ve come across Article 21. In case you don’t know what it is yet  — or you want to know how to handle it — Yeehlow is here to help you.

in the UK, Article 21 is the first notice a landlord must give to tenants in assured shorthold tenancy in order to evict them. Basically, it is the document a landlord will present when he wants to regain possession of his or her properties. This can have different implications for tenants and landlords.

Article 21 for tenants

You can only receive an Article 21 notice after a fixed term tenancy ends or if you are on a “periodic tenancy,” meaning a tenancy with no fixed end date. If you’re not sure which kind of contract you have, you can use the Shelter’s Tenancy Checker to discover!

Receiving a notice does not mean tenants will have to immediately move out of the property, as an advance period of at least two months should always be guaranteed.

Also, an eviction through Article 21 will only be valid if the landlord goes to Court and receives a possession order. This procedure must be carried out within 6 months of sending out the section 21 notice.

Tenants can challenge the eviction if they think it doesn’t respect the enforced regulations, but they may have to pay Court costs (so make sure you have clear evidence of the irregularities before taking this step!.) Here you can find a complete list of reasons that could make the notice not valid.

Article 21 for landlords

Landlords don’t have to provide a particular reason when evicting tenants, so it can be the case that the owner just wants to retake possession of his or her property.

In order to give an Article 21 notice, a landlord will have to fill the form 6a (which can be found here) and deliver it at least 2 months before he needs tenants to move out of the property.

Before doing this, make sure you have provided your tenants with the Energy Performance Certificate, the Gas Safety Certificate and the “How to Rent” guide, and that their deposits are protected through a Rent Deposit Scheme. Otherwise, your eviction notice could be contested in Court (tip: you can easily manage all these documents on Yeehlow!.)

After this, you can either request a standard possession order (if you tenant owe you rent) or an accelerated possession order (if you are not claiming rent arrears.) They cost respectively £325 and £355.

Also, landlords can request a “warrant for possession” if tenants do not leave the property by the date given in an order for possession. It costs £121.