Ending your tenancy 

When you become a tenant with us, you sign a Scottish Secure Tenancy Agreement.  This agreement provides you security of tenure, which means the tenancy will last as long as you want (as long as you don’t breach the agreement).  
Giving up your tenancy – what you need to know
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Step 1

You must give at least 28-days written notice of wanting to end your tenancy.

For joint tenancy, both parties must agree to end the tenancy.

You can provide notice by email, post or in person at our main office (you will be asked to sign a termination of tenancy form).

You must provide us with a forwarding address as part of your notice.

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Step 2

We will confirm your tenancy end date and how much rent you must pay up to that date.

You must ensure that this and any other charges are paid prior to your leaving.

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Step 3

We will arrange to inspect your home before you leave. You must leave your home in a good condition. Where we are required to conduct repairs or bring the home to an acceptable standard, you may be responsible for the payment of these repairs.

Where you have carried out improvements, that you didn’t receive permission for, you may be responsible for removing them.
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Step 4

We may ask you to allow potential new tenants in to view the property.

This will be done at your agreement and at a suitable date/time.

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Step 5

You must remove all personal belongings from your home and any outside storage areas.

If we require to clear your home of belongings after your end date, we will recharge you the cost of this process.
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Step 6

You must return your keys no later than 10am on the next working day of your end of tenancy date. If you do not return the keys to us on time, we will charge you rent for each day that they are late.

If you have not returned the keys, we will force entry into the house and change the locks. We will recover the costs of changing the locks from you.
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Step 7

On the final day within the property, you should take accurate meter readings and supply these to your energy supplier.

We would recommend that you take a photograph of these.
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Step 8

Once you have left the property, we will carry out a further inspection to ensure no damage has occurred during you moving out.

Where there is subsequent repairs required due to damages, we will recharge you the cost of these.

Repossession 

If we wish to repossess your home and end your tenancy (if you have broken your Scottish Secure Tenancy Agreement), we must follow legal procedures.  This includes, issuing notice of proceedings, court action and finally eviction.  These steps are in line with the Housing (Scotland) Act 2010, and you can find out more about this here.  

Repossession is always a last resort for the Association, and each stage of this process will be clearly communicated with you.  You are entitled to defend any action taken against your tenancy.  

Abandonments

If we suspect that you have abandoned your home, you will be served with written notice advising you of this and asking you to respond within 28-days.  During this time, we will continue to investigate if you have abandoned your home or not.  If after the 28-day period, it appears that the property is unoccupied and we have not received any contact from you we will serve a second notice to repossess your property. 

If you plan to be away for a significant length of time, please let us know.  You may also need to make suitable arrangements to pay your rent, as benefits may be stopped depending on the nature of your period away.