united-kingdom england-and-wales
Do I need to give a months notice to LL at the end of a six months contract?
<p>Do I need to give a months notice to LL at the end of six months contract ?</p>

<p>The landlord has not fulfilling some of the responsibilities they have, so is it necessary for me to give them notice of pme month before leaving.</p>

<p>Also the letting agent said that it will be another six months contract and contract won't fall on monthly basis, is there anything I could do?</p>

<p>I like in UK just outside London</p>

<p><strong>Update:</strong> </p>

<p><em>The Tenant is obligated to give notice in writing to vacate the property 1 full tenancy month before the last date of their contract.</em></p>

<p>I just found out this clause in my tenancy contract, would this cause any trouble ?</p>

<p>Assuming you have a six-month Assured Shorthold Tenancy, you don't have to give any notice at all.  As long as you are not in occupation after the end of the tenancy (which means moving out <em>before</em> it ends), that's it.  For example, <a href="http://england.shelter.org.uk/legal/security_of_tenure/assured_shorthold_tenancies/ending_an_assured_shorthold_tenancy/how_to_end_an_assured_shorthold_tenancy" rel="nofollow noreferrer">this page from Shelter</a> says:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>The general rule is that the tenant can leave on the last day of a fixed-term tenancy without giving notice, and this will end the tenancy.[2] If the tenant remains even a day longer than the last day of a fixed-term tenancy, a statutory periodic assured shorthold tenancy will arise, which the tenant can end by serving a valid notice to quit.</p>
<p>[2] Right d. Flower v. Darby (1786) 1 T.R. 159; Cobb v Stokes (1807) 8 East 358.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>This is extremely bad news for landlords, who don't (necessarily) get any notice that they have a void.  In general, I would say you ought to give a month's notice (full disclosure, I am a landlord), on the other hand, if they haven't fulfilled their responsibilities perhaps not (but you may have an exaggerated idea of their responsibilities).</p>
<p>If you do this, don't expect to get a good reference from your landlord! (Which is going to make it harder to find somewhere else to live).  You should also anticipate difficulties in recovering your deposit (you are legally entitled to it back, but that doesn't mean your landlord can't be difficult about it - possibly even requiring you to sue for it).</p>
<hr />
<p>I have just noticed the second part of your question.</p>
<p>If you do nothing (in other words, stay in residence), at the end of your Assured Shorthold Tenancy you will switch to a periodic tenancy.  The landlord can't force you to switch to another six-month contract, but on the other hand, if you <em>don't</em>, they are perfectly entitled to give you two months notice.  If they are smart, they will give you this notice <em>now</em>, so that you can only stay for two months on the periodic tenancy.</p>
<p>Note that the letting agent has an incentive to get you and the landlord to sign another contract (they can charge the landlord a fee for it), so they may not be being entirely honest about whether a periodic tenancy is an option.  (On the other hand, a poor landlord may be more interested in locking a tenant in for six months.)</p>
