My son is thinking of renting out his house while he’s abroad. I’ve told him that if he clears all his furniture out he’s asking for trouble, since it used to be very difficult to get anybody out of a house they’d put their own furniture into. Is this still the case?
It’s true that people renting unfurnished property used to have more security of tenure under the Rent Act, but the position has changed. Although there are still minor differences between renting furnished and unfurnished property your son will be renting out his house under the auspices of the Housing Act 1988. He shouldn’t have any problem getting his property back on his return: the best ground for repossession is that the house is required for the owner to live in himself.