P-R

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Periodic tenancy
Occurs when a landlord does nothing to reclaim possession of the property at the end of an assured short hold tenancy. By not issuing a notice to quit, tenants are able to remain in the property without the issuing a new tenancy agreement. All terms and conditions of the original assured short hold tenancy agreement remain the same, as does the right of the landlord to bring the tenancy to an end by service of the required two month’s.
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Possession
See Mandatory grounds for possession, Assured short hold tenancy, Discretionary grounds for possession, Grounds for possession, and Section 21.
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Quiet enjoyment
Gives tenants the right to enjoy uninterrupted use of the property during the course of their tenancy without interference from the landlord or the landlord’s agents.
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Reduced Data Standard Assessment Procedure (RdSAP)
An industry agreed standard that allows Domestic Energy Assessors to calculate energy usage of a property through the reference of standard tables.
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Registered rent
Covers rent included on the publicly available Rent Register (as determined by the Rent Service or Rent Assessment Committee) and contains the maximum rent that can be charged until a new determination is agreed or the tenant leaves.
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Regulated tenancy
Most continuing private tenancies entered into before 15 January 1989 are regulated tenancies under the Rent Act 1977. Under this act a tenant has long term security of tenure whilst both the landlord and the tenant themselves have the right to have a Fair rent registered for the tenancy by an independent rent officer. Similarly both the landlord and the tenant also have a right to appeal to a rent assessment committee if they are unhappy with the rent officer’s Fair rent decision.

Once a rent is registered, landlords cannot choose to charge a higher rent without first reapplying to the rent officer. Unfortunately getting a new application for registration is not possible for at least two years unless there is a relevant change of circumstances to merit a change in rent.

PLEASE NOTE: Under the Housing Act 1988 – which introduced assured and assured short hold tenancies at market rents for most new lettings on or after 15 January 1989 – tenants’ still have the right to security of tenure and rent control.
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Rent Assessment Committees (RACs)
Should a landlord or a tenant of a Regulated tenancy object to rent decision by provided by the Rent Service, their case will be passed to a Rent Assessment Committee who will decide the Fair rent of the property.

Similar tenants living in a property with an assured tenancy can also apply to the RAC for clarification of the open market rent they should be paying within the first six months of their tenancy or if their landlord has served them with notice of a proposed rent increase.

Traditionally rent assessment committees are made up of two or three people – a solicitor, a property valuer and a lay person, all of whom are drawn from panels of people with appropriate expertise.

In total there are 14 rent assessment panels in England and Wales who have been appointed by the Government. PLEASE NOTE: the rents they set are the legal maximum that can be charged for one year from the date of the decisions, after which an application for an increase can be made.
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Rent assessment panels
See Residential Property Tribunal Service
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Rent officer
A local authority official who is responsible for monitoring/controlling housing benefit. Using the local Rent Service, they will assess whether or not the rent being asked for is reasonable and whether the property is suitable – in size – for the claimants needs.
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Rent Service
An executive agency of the Department for Work and Pensions, here they carry out rental valuations for housing benefit purposes; make fair rent determinations; advise local authorities about the effects on rent of housing renovation grant applications by landlords; as well as carry out rental valuations for a variety of customers within the public and private sector.
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Rental yields
The precise definition of ‘Rental yields’ can vary but more often than not it consists of the gross rental yield being taken as the annual rent of a property as a percentage of its capital value or acquisition price.

Net rental yield: is the amount of annual rent left after deducting expenses as a percentage of capital value or acquisition price.

Rental return or capital return: is the annual income from renting less the costs plus annual capital appreciation as a percentage of the original investment in the property.
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Repayment mortgage
A type of mortgage whereby the borrower pays a set amount each month comprising of both interest and capital repayment on the property. Monthly repayments on determined on paying off the mortgage by its expiry date.
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Repo rate
Represents the rate set each month by the MPC. This is used as the benchmark for other interest rates, including personal loans and mortgages.
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Residential Property Tribunal Service (RPTS)
The Residential Property Tribunal Service is an independent body which aims to help landlords, tenants and leaseholders by providing them with a fair and accessible tribunal service to help them settle disputes on rents or on leasehold properties.

The RPTS remit currently covers England and comprises of five regional Rent Assessment Panels located in London; Southern England; Northern England; the Midlands; and Eastern England.

PLEASE NOTE: Rent Assessment Panels do not have the power to deal with all types of dispute about rents and leasehold matters.
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Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS)
This professional body covers all aspects of real estate, property, construction and associated environmental issues. To date RICS has got over 110,000 members worldwide and represents, regulates and promotes the work of property professionals across 120 countries.
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