A tenancy agreement for a room in a shared house in England should set out who the tenancy is between, which room and shared areas it covers, the rent and rent period, the deposit, how bills work, how repairs are reported and any house rules. First decide whether each room gets its own individual tenancy (usual in a house let room by room) or the whole house is let on one joint tenancy. Since 1 May 2026, new private assured tenancies are periodic: no fixed term, no rent review clause, and the tenant can leave with two months' notice. Your agreement needs to reflect that.
This guide covers both types of tenancy and what to include, clause by clause. It isn't a template, and it isn't legal advice.
Individual tenancies or one joint tenancy
An individual tenancy for each room
Each tenant has their own agreement for their own room, plus shared use of the kitchen, bathrooms and other common areas. Each has their own rent, deposit and start date.
Why landlords choose it: one tenant leaving doesn't end anyone else's tenancy, you can re-let a room on its own, and each tenant is responsible only for their own rent.
What it means for you: you're usually the person liable for council tax, you'll normally handle the bills, and if three or more people from more than one household live there, the house is a shared house (the legal term is HMO) with extra management duties and possibly a licence.
One joint tenancy of the whole house
A group signs one agreement for the whole house. GOV.UK's guide to assured periodic tenancies for landlords explains that if more than one tenant signs the same agreement, it's a joint tenancy, and all the tenants on the agreement are responsible for the rent. In practice, that usually means that if one doesn't pay, the others can be asked to cover it.
Why landlords choose it: one agreement, one rent, and the group sorts out the rooms among themselves. It suits friends or students who move in and out together.
The catch: GOV.UK says one joint tenant will usually be able to end the joint tenancy without the agreement of the others. If the others want to stay, everyone has to agree how, and the remaining tenants can sign a new agreement. Replacing one person usually means a new tenancy. A house let to a group on a joint tenancy can still be a shared house for licensing purposes if the people in it form more than one household.
Lodgers are different
If you live in the house yourself and share the kitchen or bathroom with the person renting, they're probably a lodger, not a tenant, and a different, simpler agreement applies. See lodger or tenant?
What changed on 1 May 2026
The Renters' Rights Act 2025 changed the kind of tenancy most private landlords grant. From 1 May 2026, new and existing private assured tenancies became assured periodic tenancies. For your agreement, that means:
- No fixed term. The tenancy rolls on from one rent period to the next.
- The tenant can leave by giving two months' notice.
- You can only end the tenancy using a ground for possession, not Section 21.
- Rent increases go through the statutory process on Form 4A, at most once a year. A rent review clause in the agreement won't do it.
- Rent in advance is limited to one month's rent, or 28 days' rent if rent isn't paid monthly, and can only be taken after the agreement is signed and before the tenancy starts.
Existing tenants didn't need new agreements; instead, landlords had to give them the government's information sheet by 31 May 2026.
For new tenancies, you must give the tenant certain written information about the key terms before they sign a tenancy agreement or otherwise agree the tenancy. You can include it in a written tenancy agreement or give it separately. If you don't, you could be fined up to £7,000. The duty is in section 16D of the Housing Act 1988, added by the Renters' Rights Act, and the required contents are set out in the Written Statement of Terms regulations. They include the names of the landlord and tenant, an address in England or Wales for notices, the address of the home, the date the tenant can move in, the rent and when it's due, and any bills the tenant has to pay. Check the full list on GOV.UK before you finalise your template.
The government's old model agreement for assured shorthold tenancies has been removed from GOV.UK, and we didn't find a replacement model agreement for assured periodic tenancies when we checked. If you use a template from a landlord association or a solicitor, make sure it's been updated for the periodic regime and covers the required written information.
What to include, clause by clause
The parties and the property
- Your full name and an address in England and Wales where the tenant can send notices.
- The tenant's full name.
- The address of the house, and exactly which room is let.
- The shared areas the tenant can use: kitchen, bathrooms, living room, garden, bike store.
Start date and rent period
- The date the tenancy starts.
- The rent period: weekly or monthly. It decides when rent is due and how notice periods line up.
- A clear statement that the tenancy is periodic.
Rent
- The amount, and what it includes (for example "including energy, water, broadband and council tax").
- The day it's due and how to pay.
- How much rent in advance is required, within the legal limit.
GOV.UK's guide to assured periodic tenancies for landlords explains how tenancy agreements work now, and the tenants' version, assured periodic tenancies: a guide for tenants, shows what your tenants will expect to see.
Deposit
- The amount, within the legal cap of five weeks' rent where the annual rent is under £50,000.
- Which scheme will protect it, and that you'll give the prescribed information within the deadline. See tenancy deposit protection.
- When deductions might be made, and that they'll be supported by evidence such as the start and end of tenancy inventory. See deposit deductions and disputes.
Bills
If bills are included, say which ones. If you recharge bills, say how they're split (equally, by room size or by number of people) and how part periods are handled. Remember the limits on reselling energy.
Repairs and access
- How to report repairs, and what counts as urgent.
- Your obligations for repairs and safety, and the tenant's obligations to take reasonable care.
- How much notice you'll give before visiting for inspections or repairs. Where the law implies the landlord's repairing duty, it also lets you enter to view the condition of the home at reasonable times of day, on 24 hours' written notice. Apart from emergencies, don't promise yourself less notice than that.
House rules
Shared houses run more smoothly with a few clear rules: cleaning of shared areas, bins and recycling, overnight guests, smoking, noise at night, bikes in the hallway. Keep them reasonable and make sure they don't take away the tenant's legal rights.
Pets
Under the Renters' Rights Act, tenants can ask to keep a pet and landlords can't refuse without a fair reason. The tenant asks in writing and describes the pet. You have 28 days to reply in writing. If you ask for more information, you get the rest of the 28 days or 7 days after the tenant replies, whichever is later. If you refuse, explain why in writing. GOV.UK gives another tenant's allergy as an example of a fair reason, which can matter in a shared house.
Guarantor
If you take a guarantor, they sign a separate guarantee. In a house let room by room, it's sensible to limit the guarantee to the one tenant's room and rent, so the guarantor knows exactly what they're agreeing to. Take advice on the wording.
Ending the tenancy
Explain how the tenant can end the tenancy and that you can only end it on a statutory ground. The most notice you can ask a tenant for is two months, ending on a rent day or the day before. Avoid clauses that try to reintroduce fixed terms or break clauses.
What to leave out
- Fixed terms and break clauses.
- Rent review clauses.
- Fees not allowed by the Tenant Fees Act 2019.
- Anything that tries to remove the tenant's legal rights, such as "the landlord may enter at any time".
Worked example
Names and figures are made up.
Tom lets a six-room house, room by room. He doesn't live there.
He uses one template for all six rooms, updated for the periodic regime and including the required written information, and fills in the details for each tenant. He gives it to each tenant before they sign. Room 3's agreement says:
- Between Tom and Leah, for Room 3 with shared use of the kitchen, two bathrooms, lounge and garden.
- Starts 1 November; monthly rent period; periodic.
- Rent £625 a month (example figure), due on the 1st, including energy, water, broadband and council tax. One month's rent paid after signing and before move-in.
- Deposit of four weeks' rent (example), protected in a named scheme, with prescribed information given within 30 days.
- Repairs reported in writing; emergencies by phone.
- House rules attached: cleaning rota, bins on Tuesday, no smoking indoors.
- Leah can end the tenancy with two months' written notice.
Tom takes a start of tenancy inventory of Room 3 with photos before Leah moves in, and gives her a copy along with the agreement and the safety certificates.
When Leah leaves the following year, Tom re-lets Room 3 on a new agreement. None of the other five tenancies change.
How Rentap helps
In Rentap, each room has its own tenancy with its own rent (weekly or monthly), start date and rent period. You can keep the tenancy agreement with the tenancy, record the deposit and its return, and take start and end of tenancy inventories with photos. Each tenant has one account, and every past tenancy stays in the room's history. Rentap doesn't write tenancy agreements or check them against the law. See rent tracking, deposits and pricing.
Related reading: periodic tenancies: what changed, bills in a shared house and the glossary of letting terms.
Sources
- Renters' Rights Act 2025 (legislation.gov.uk)
- Renters' Rights Act 2025, Part 1 (legislation.gov.uk)
- Renting is changing: guidance for landlords (GOV.UK)
- Guide to the Renters' Rights Act (GOV.UK)
- The Renters' Rights Act information sheet 2026 (GOV.UK)
- Assured tenancy forms for privately rented properties from 1 May 2026 (GOV.UK)
- Assured periodic tenancies: a guide for landlords (GOV.UK), including rent in advance and deposits, rent increases, pets and if your tenant wants to leave
- Tenancy agreements: written information for your tenant (GOV.UK)
- Written Statement of Terms etc and Information Sheet Regulations 2026 (legislation.gov.uk)
- Assured periodic tenancies: a guide for tenants (GOV.UK)
- Private renting: deposits (GOV.UK)
- Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, section 11 (legislation.gov.uk)
- Tenant Fees Act 2019 (legislation.gov.uk)
Last checked: 10 October 2026. This guide is general information, not legal advice.