Lease
A lease is a legally binding contract that gives someone the right to occupy and use property for a fixed term, in return for rent or a premium. In housing, it underpins both long leasehold ownership, for example a 99-year flat lease and shorter private tenancies granted to residential tenants in the Private Rented Sector (PRS).
A lease normally sets out ket items including the parties, the property, the term, the rent, any ground rent or service charges, key tenancy conditions, and who is responsible for repairs and capital improvements. If you are a leaseholder who sublets, you may be a mesne landlord, with duties both to your superior landlord, the freeholder and to your own tenants.
Under the Renters’ Rights Act, most leases you grant to individuals as their only or main home for rent will be treated in law as assured tenancies, previously often assured shorthold tenancies (ASTs), regardless of label. That brings in statutory rules on rental standards, fit for human habitation, permitted payments, tenancy deposit caps and protection, and oversight by the Private Rented Sector Ombudsman and PRS Database.
Calling an agreement a “lease” or “licence” does not override these rights. What matters is how the arrangement works in practice.
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