Ending your tenancy

Ending Your Tenancy

You must tell us at least four weeks before you move house, and you must tell us in writing. If you fail to give four weeks notice and a squatter moves in, you may not be able to apply for housing in future and you may not be eligible for public sector housing in future.

We will ask you to allow new tenants to come and look round your house at a time that is convenient for you.

Death of a tenant

Following the death of a tenant the next of kin/relative should contact their district office to advise them of the death of the tenant. If the tenant was living alone, the next of kin/relative is are normally relied upon to clear the dwelling and give vacant possession.

If no initial contact is made by the next of kin and staff in the district office are aware of the death, they may call to the home or send a letter asking to be contacted as soon as possible.

Following the death of a tenant, we will allow the next of kin/relative a reasonable period of time to clear the property, but the rent account will not be terminated until we receive vacant possession. We may contact the Executor of the will to reclaim outstanding rent from the estate of the deceased.

If someone had been living with the deceased tenant they may be entitled to succeed to their tenancy. In such circumstances they will be invited to complete an application form requesting succession of tenancy and their district office will write and advise them of their decision.

Bereavement service

If you need to report the death of someone receiving Social Security benefits, you can do this by contacting The Bereavement Service using a dedicated freephone number - 0800 085 2463.

Things to do before you leave your Housing Executive home

  1. Give us at least four weeks notice in writing to end your tenancy
  2. Provide us with your forwarding address in case we need to contact you in the future
  3. Remove all your furniture and belongings, and leave the property clean and tidy
  4. Contact Northern Ireland Electricity and/or Phoenix Gas to tell them you are leaving and arrange to get your meter read.
  5. If you can leave any instruction leaflets relating to appliances (particularly heating appliances) do so
  6. Rent is due to the last day of your tenancy. If you are paying by direct debit or standing order, you need to make arrangements to stop them
  7. If you are in rent arrears, make sure you clear them before the end of your tenancy or make an arrangement to clear them
  8. Arrange for all your mail to be redirected to your new home
  9. Return the keys to your District Office, before 12 noon on the last day of your tenancy.

The Housing Executive will:

  1. Arrange a home visit
  2. Inspect the general condition of the property
  3. Advise you in writing of any repairs you have to complete
  4. Allocate your home to a new tenant
  5. Carry out a final inspection of the property after you move out
  6. Advise you of any chargeable repair items

You must:

  1. Carry out repairs that are your responsibility
  2. Remove all furniture and rubbish from the property (Contact your local council if you need help with this)
  3. Return all keys to your local office
  4. Contact your electricity and/or gas providers

Make sure you complete the following steps before leaving your home.

  1. Make sure that the kitchen and bathroom are thoroughly cleaned, with all units cleared and any damage to units reported
  2. Report any damaged tiles
  3. Make sure all door panels and window panes are intact and report any damages
  4. Make sure all light fittings are NIHE standard fitting
  5. Remove any rubbish from the garden and mow the grass
  6. Remove all furniture and rubbish from the property, including the roof space and shed.
  7. Leave the wheelie bin at the property
  8. Return all keys for front, back and store doors

Next
Information for leaseholders