Ending your tenancy

If you want to end your tenancy you must give us at least four weeks’ notice in writing. Remember to tell us the date you will be moving out and the address you will be moving to.

We will send you a form to fill in and arrange for your home to be inspected. The four weeks’ notice period will begin from the date we receive the completed form. During this inspection we will check whether you need to do any repairs or redecorating before you leave to bring the property up to an acceptable standard.  We will inspect the property again when you leave and may charge for any work that you should have done before you left. If you do not leave the house in a good condition, we will charge you for any repairs, cleaning or redecoration required to bring the house up to standard.

You will be responsible for removing any belongings in the house or garden, including carpets, unless your housing services officer has told you they can stay.  If you just leave them, we will have them removed and will charge you for this.

Remember, you will have to pay rent up to the end of your notice period or the date you return your keys, whichever is later.  When you give us your notice we will tell you how much rent and charges you will have to pay before you leave.

We need four weeks’ notice so that we can inspect the property and carry out any repairs or redecorating that is needed.  We also use this time to start the process to let the property to a new tenant.  If you are transferring to another property of ours, or getting a tenancy with another Highland Housing Register partner, your notice period may be much shorter, depending on when your new home is ready.  We will discuss this with you at the time.

The Highland Housing Register partners are:

• us;
• The Highland Council;
• Cairn Housing Association Ltd;
• Lochaber Housing Association Ltd;
• Lochalsh & Skye Housing Association Ltd; and
• Pentland Housing Association Ltd.

We can end your tenancy by taking you to court.  We will only do this if you have broken your tenancy agreement with us and we have not been able to solve the problem with you in any other way.  Situations where we may take you to court include the following.

• If you have not paid your rent
• If you are not living in the property as your only or main home
• If you have used the property for illegal purposes
• If you or anyone living with or visiting you has acted in a seriously antisocial way
• If you gave us false information when you applied for housing or a transfer
• If you have significantly damaged or neglected any part of the property or shared areas

If you die, another member of your household who has lived with you for at least the previous six months may be able to take over your tenancy.  This is known as succession.

If you have a joint tenancy, your joint tenant would become the sole tenant.  This may not count as a succession.

A tenancy can only be passed on by succession twice. This is explained in more detail in your tenancy agreement.

Different rules apply to homes that are fully adapted for wheelchair users.  We have to try to make the best use of these properties because they are very specialised and not readily available throughout the area. If you live in one of these properties, only your partner can take over the tenancy by succession, and no future partner of theirs will be able to take over the tenancy.

If you do not have a partner and nobody else living in the property uses a wheelchair, we will try to move the household to another home.  If someone living in the property does use a wheelchair but does not have a right to take over the tenancy by succession, we will try to allow the household to stay in the property.