Rent books

A rent book is a document used to:

• Keep details about your tenancy
• Record all the rent payments you make

You keep the rent book. But you should make it available to your landlord if they ask so they can make changes and record your rent and other payments.

What does a rent book look like?

Rent books are usually small booklets, but they can come in other formats.

They must contain all the necessary information about your tenancy. For example, when your tenancy started and how much the rent is.

Should I keep any other records?

Even if you have a rent book, you should also keep:

• Your own written records of any payments you make to your landlord
• Any receipts from your landlord

Note: If you pay your rent by electronic funds transfer (EFT), you may agree with your landlord to use the record of EFT payments as a receipt of payments, instead of using a rent book. Find more about this in the ‘Does my landlord have to give me a rent book’ section below.

Where do I get a rent book?

Your landlord should buy the rent book for your tenancy. Rent books are available to buy:

• In bookshops
• In stationery and office supplies shops
• Online from bookshops and housing charities, like Threshold

If you are a tenant living in rented accommodation, you have a legal right to a rent book, or a similar document that contains the same information. This applies whether you are renting from:

• A private landlord
• An approved housing body
• A local authority
• An employer

There are different rules about how the rent book is used depending on how you pay your rent.

If you pay your rent in person

If you pay your rent in person, your landlord must either:

• Record each payment you make in the rent book
• Give you a written receipt with details of the payment

The rent book entry or receipt must be signed by the landlord and include:

• The amount you paid
• The purpose of the payment
• The date of the payment
• The period the payment is for

If you pay your rent in another way

If you pay your rent in another way, for example, by post or electronic funds transfer (EFT), your landlord must either:

• Record the payment in your rent book
• Give you a written receipt within 3 months of getting your payment

The rent book entry or receipt must be signed by the landlord and include:

• The amount paid
• The purpose
• The date of the payment
• The period the payment is for

If you pay your rent by EFT, you and your landlord can agree that the EFT record counts as a receipt. However, you should both keep your own records of the payments made in case of a dispute.

Exceptions to the requirement to have a rent book

You do not have to have a rent book, or a statement of rent paid if you:

• Rent a room in your landlord’s home
• Rent a room from another tenant in your landlord’s home

These arrangements are licence arrangements, not tenancies. So, the normal landlord and tenant laws, like having a rent book, do not apply to them.

Your rent book should include:

• The address of the tenancy
• Your landlord's name and address and the landlord's agent if they have one any
• Your name
• The date the tenancy started
• The length of the tenancy
• The amount of deposit paid
• The amount of rent and how it is to be paid
• Details of any other payments for services, such as heating or broadband
• An overview of your landlords rights and responsibilities
• An overview of your tenants rights and responsibilities
• A list of furnishings and appliances that come with your tenancy

It is against the law for your landlord to refuse to give you a rent book or a written receipt of the rent you have paid.

If this does happen, you should inform them of their obligation to give you a rent book.

Who to contact if my landlord won’t give me a rent book

If your landlord will not give you a rent book after you've asked for one, you should contact your local authority who enforce the Rent Book Regulations.

Threshold also offer advice on this and help you contact your local authority.

The Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) offers a dispute resolution service for landlords and tenants. Landlords must be registered with the RTB to use the service but tenants can use it even if their landlord has not registered the tenancy.

For further information about rent books, you can contact your local authority.