A joint tenancy can be held by a husband and wife, or same sex partners who have lived together for at least 12 months.
Both parties sign the tenancy agreement and share an equal interest in the tenancy.
You can find out more about joint tenancies and download the form here.
What a joint tenancy means
Each individual tenant is responsible for the whole tenancy. For example, if one joint tenant leaves, the joint tenant who is left still has rights to the tenancy and must pay the rent.
An absent joint tenant can return at any time and claim their tenancy rights.
Sole tenancy
This means that if a relationship breaks down and one partner leaves, their name can only be removed from the tenancy agreement if there is a formal ‘assignment’ (transfer) of the tenancy or a ‘property adjustment order’ as part of separation proceedings.
If this happens, please contact us.
Alternatively, you can apply for a sole tenancy by filling in, signing and returning our sole tenancy form, which can be downloaded here.