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We are often asked the question of what the situation is once a notice pursuant to section 21 of the Housing Act 1988 expires.

Thanks to the decision of the House of Lords in Knowsley Housing Trust v White it is known that a tenancy agreement for an assured or assured shorthold tenancy does not in fact come to an end until the Court Bailiff has executed an order for possession. Therefore the service of a section 21 notice does not in itself bring a tenancy to an end. This means that the measures of only referring to rent as mesne profits after the service of section 21 notice are not necessarily required (although they may be a good idea so as not to confuse busy District Judges!).

If a tenant wishes to stay after the expiry of a section 21 notice for a short period this can easily be dealt with by simply sending a letter advising the tenant that the landlord will not be enforcing the expired possession order until a specific date. Subscribers to the PainSmith helpline service will be able to obtain a suitable letter from the document vault on their website.

Section 21 notices have no finite lifetime in which they can be used, they oldest reported case involves a section 21 notice which expired 6 years before the possession action began. Therefore agents should not be overly focused on the section 21 notice and tenants staying on after it has expired and more on making sure they have not offered a new tenancy which might override the notice.