3rd March 2020
Q: Does my tenant have right of access to the garage?
A: Some questions that come to mind are: Where is the garage located? Is the garage an integral part of the building or a separate entity in a block, or a communal row of garages?
Regardless of whether the garage is integral or separate, it is important to verbally inform the tenant that the garage is out of bounds at point of viewing, and then make this clear in a separate specific and detailed addendum in the tenancy agreement. This keeps things nice, easy and clear from the outset.
The problem arises when your tenant is currently in tenancy and has been using the garage, and you then decide that you want to take back possession! In this situation the tenant doesn’t have to relinquish rights of the garage. If you have not stated that the garage is restricted in the tenancy agreement then you might just be stuck. If you need your garage back, we would suggest that you contact your tenant and explain the reason why, who knows, you may be lucky and they might hand this back without any issues. Or, it might simply be worth offering to reduce the tenant’s rent by £50 or £25 a month for example, just to make it more agreeable.
If you need any other lettings guidance, please do get in touch.
