Quality homes in strong communities. Mutual Exchange Policy

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1 Mutual Exchange Policy We can supply this information in large print, on audio tape or in your language. Please call to discuss your requirements. Quality homes in strong communities 1

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3 What is a mutual exchange? A mutual exchange is when two or more tenants swap properties with each other, and in doing so, pass on their legal interest in the tenancy. When a mutual exchange takes place, each party involved takes on the original terms of the tenancy agreement of the person they have swapped with. A Council tenant has a legal right to mutually exchange homes with another Council or Housing Association tenant anywhere in the UK, subject to certain conditions set out in the Housing Act Why does PHP have a Mutual Exchange Policy? Every week PHP receives requests from tenants who wish to swap homes with someone else. This is because mutual exchanges can be a good way to move house without having to wait a long time on a transfer or waiting list. At PHP we have a mutual exchange policy to ensure that all enquiries and applications for a mutual exchange are dealt with fairly and consistently, and that both staff and tenants are clear about the legal rules and processes PHP must follow when considering an application for a mutual exchange. We also want to make sure that tenants who are considering swapping homes with someone else are fully aware of the legal implications of this, and how it may affect their rights as a tenant. 3

4 If I swap my home with someone else, will it affect my tenancy in any way? When you swap homes with another tenant, you effectively take on all the rights and responsibilities of their tenancy. Whether or not swapping homes will affect your rights as a tenant depends on the type of tenancy agreement the person has that you intend to swap with. At PHP, we only grant secure tenancies. This means that you will keep the same legal rights if you exchange homes with another PHP tenant, or someone else with a secure tenancy. Landlords who grant secure tenancies are: Local authorities Arms Length Management Organisations (ALMOs) Housing Action Trusts New Town Commissions Urban Development Corporations Housing Co-operatives (where the stock is owned by the Local Authority). Housing Associations, for tenancies granted before 15 January If you swap homes with someone who does not have a secure tenancy, your legal rights as a tenant may be affected. Generally, this will apply if you intend to swap homes with someone living in a Housing Association property with an assured tenancy. If you take on an assured tenancy when you swap homes, you may have significantly fewer succession rights, and your right to assign your tenancy to someone else may also be affected. Your right to buy your home will also be affected. 4

5 You should also be aware that if you succeeded to your current tenancy, and you swap homes, no-one else in your household will have a further right to succeed if you died, as any previous successions are carried with you to your new tenancy. Moving home is a big decision, so please think very carefully if you are considering a mutual exchange, as you will take on all the rights and responsibilities of the previous tenant. This can include repair and maintenance responsibilities for any home improvements made by the previous tenant, and in some cases, responsibility for items supplied by the landlord. Before you move, you should check with your new landlord what rights and responsibilities you would have with them after you have moved in. If you would like more information about your right to mutually exchange your home, and how this might affect your tenancy, please contact you Housing or Sheltered Housing Officer on How do I go about arranging a mutual exchange? To arrange a mutual exchange with another tenant, either in Poole, or in another area, you must find someone who is interested in swapping homes with you. There are lists available in the reception areas at Beech House and Housing and Community Services at the Civic Centre that provide details of everyone in Poole who is interested in a mutual exchange. You can also access the national on-line Homeswapper service at Beech House. Once you have registered, you can list your property, and look for other properties in Poole, and elsewhere in the UK. 5

6 Once you have found a property that you think is suitable, it is up to you to contact the tenant directly to find out if they are interested in swapping homes with you. If you do want to exchange properties, you will need to complete a Mutual Exchange Application form and return this to PHP. The person who you wish to swap with will also need to complete an application form and send this to us. Please remember that if you have a joint tenancy, both parties need to sign the form. What happens when I have found someone to mutually exchange with? Once we have received your application forms we will check your rent, and any other accounts you have with us to make sure you have no arrears. PHP has a policy of not allowing a mutual exchange application to continue at this stage if there is more than two weeks arrears on your rent account, or if you have any other outstanding debts with us. If you are waiting on Housing Benefit payments, we will only consider your application once we have received notification of your entitlement to Housing Benefit. We will then arrange for your Housing Officer and a Property Inspector to carry out a joint inspection of your property. This is to ensure that your home is in good decorative order and is structurally sound in line with our property standards. Further details about the condition we expect your property to be in are provided in the information leaflet, Mutual Exchange Property Standards. If you are exchanging with someone who is not another PHP tenant, we will write to their landlord, requesting a tenant reference report about them and all members of their household who intend to move. 6

7 On what grounds can my application be refused or delayed? Schedule 3 of the Housing Act 1985 sets out the grounds on which a mutual exchange can be refused; these are: If you, or the other person applying to swap, are obliged to give up possession of the property by Court Order. If we have begun proceedings to possess your property, or the other person s landlord has begun possession proceedings against them or there is a notice seeking possession in place for any tenant applying to swap. If the household moving into your property would be underoccupying by two or more bedrooms. If you require an extra bedroom on medical grounds, we will allow the mutual exchange to go ahead, but we will need evidence of this. If the person you are swapping with would be overcrowded if they moved into your home. If you, or the other person applying to swap, have rent arrears or other debts outstanding with us or the other landlord. If there are any outstanding debts, we will reconsider the application once all rent and any other debts are cleared. As a PHP tenant, you should have no more than two weeks rent outstanding when you apply for a mutual exchange and your rent account must be cleared before or on the day of the mutual exchange. If you, or the other person applying to swap, have broken your tenancy conditions in any way. This can include arrears, evidence of anti-social behaviour or evidence that you have not been looking after your home in line with our property standards. 7

8 If your home has been adapted for someone with a physical disability, and the household you intend to swap with do not require these. If the household you intend to swap with does not meet any special allocation criteria that applies to your home. This will normally apply to sheltered housing where tenants must be at least 60 years old. If you, or the person you intend to swap with currently have a Licence Agreement or Assured Short hold Tenancy. If you, or the person you intend to swap with live in a property allocated as part of your employment. We will also refuse the application if you, or the person you intend to swap with have breached the conditions of your tenancy in any way. If we refuse your application for a mutual exchange for any of the reasons listed above, we must, by law write to you within 42 days of receiving your application to inform you of our decision. When we write to you we will tell you if your application can be considered at a future date, and provide details of anything that you, or the other person applying to swap, need to do to in order for your application to be re-considered. This could include paying off any arrears, reinstating your property back to a reasonable standard or ensuring any home improvements you have made, such as driveways, patios or conservatories are in good repair. We may also ask you remove any home improvements that are beyond repair. 8

9 If I exchange with someone who has made improvements to their home, what type of repairs and maintenance work will I be responsible for? After you have moved, you will be responsible for the repair and maintenance of any non-standard alterations, fixtures or fittings made by the previous tenant. Before we agree to the mutual exchange we will list all the items or improvements that you will be responsible for and you will need to sign an Indemnity Form agreeing to this. If you do not wish to accept responsibility for items or improvements done by the person you are swapping with, these will need to be removed and the property reinstated to the standard in which it was let, as PHP will not accept responsibility for items and work not normally supplied by us. We will not allow the exchange to go ahead until any work identified has been completed. If you are intending to move to a property with another landlord, you will need to check with them what your repairs and maintenance responsibilities will be after you move. Can I apply to mutually exchange if my home has been adapted because of a disability or other needs, and I will need these when I move? If your current home has been adapted because you, or any member of your household have a disability or particular needs, we can only allow the exchange to go ahead if the person you intend to swap with needs the adaptations in your home, and we would need evidence of this from an Occupational Therapist or GP. If you intend to swap to a PHP property that does not have the adaptations you require, we may advise you to think about transferring to another property that is more suited to your needs. This is because 9

10 the home you intend to move to may not be suitable for the adaptations you require. Even if the property can be suitably adapted, we will not be able start the work required until you have signed the tenancy agreement and moved in, and if you require extensive adaptations, you may have to wait some time, as we have waiting lists for this type of work. If you do have a disability or any particular needs we will arrange a meeting with an Occupational Therapist to discuss your housing needs and options, based on your individual circumstances and we will assess your needs in line with our Adaptations Policy. If you are exchanging to another landlord, we recommend that you ask about their Adaptation Policy to ensure you will get any adaptations that you need. How long will it take for PHP to make a decision? By law, we must give you our decision in writing within 42 days from when we receive your application, and the timescale for our response will depend on the individual circumstances of those who wish to swap homes. When we receive a mutual exchange application, we need to check the forms to ensure that all parties have provided us with the relevant information and there are no issues with the tenancy that need to be sorted; we need to carry out property inspections and also seek references if the person you intend to swap with is not a PHP tenant. It is only when these tasks have been completed that we can come to a decision. The 42-day deadline relates to our decision as to whether or not the exchange can go ahead, and does not mean that the mutual exchange will necessarily go ahead within 42 days. When we approve a mutual 10

11 exchange application, this is often provisional and the final go ahead will be given once work or action has been completed by you, or the person you intend to swap with. Examples of things that can typically cause a delay are: Arrears or other debts to be cleared Work identified at the property inspection Work needed following the gas and electrical safety checks Delays in receiving reference requests If there is likely to be a delay for whatever reason, we will agree with you the best way to keep you updated and informed of the progress of your application. What happens next if my application to mutually exchange is approved? If we approve your application for a mutual exchange, we will confirm this in writing and arrange for a gas and electrical safety check to be completed at your property. Once this has been completed, and any necessary work has been carried out, you and the person you are exchanging homes with must both agree on a date to move. All our tenancies start on a Monday. When a moving date is agreed, we will arrange for you, and the person you are swapping with to come to our offices sign a Deed of Assignment and all parties will need to have a clear rent account, and no other outstanding debts on the day of the exchange. Please note: After we have completed the gas and electrical safety checks at your property, and any necessary work has been completed, you MUST tell us if there is any damage to appliances, sockets or pipes before or during the move. 11

12 Points you should think about if you are intending to apply for a mutual exchange If you are thinking about a mutual exchange, we strongly suggest that you consider the following points before you continue with your application. When you mutually exchange your home, you take on all the rights and responsibilities of that tenancy. We therefore advise you to think carefully before proceeding with your application, particularly if you will be changing the type of tenancy agreement you have. Check with your intended landlord what tenancy rights you will have, especially if it is not a secure tenancy agreement. Check the condition of the property you intend to move to thoroughly. This should include checking the inside of all cupboards, the loft or roof-space, (if applicable), the condition of the garden and any other attachments to the property, such as sheds or garages. If you think that the tenant you wish to swap homes with has made any major alterations to the property, you should ask their landlord to confirm that they had approval for any work carried out, and all necessary permissions were granted at the time. If in any doubt, you should request a structural survey of the property because once you have signed the Deed of Assignment, you may be responsible for putting right any major works that were completed by the previous tenant in the future. 12

13 If you, and the person you are swapping with intend to leave any items or non-standard fittings in the property, then we would advise that you check everything is in working order/good repair and both parties sign a document agreeing to what items, if any, will be left. We will ensure that the person you swap with signs an Indemnity Form that details all non-standard items they have agreed repair and maintenance responsibility for; you may want to ensure you do this with your new landlord if you are not exchanging with another PHP tenant. View the property more than once, and at different times of the day and week. Do not move home without the written permission of all landlords involved or before you have signed the Deed of Assignment. If you do, it could result in all parties losing their homes, and the Local Authority will have no duty to re-house you. If you are in any doubt about moving home, do not sign the Deed of Assignment or move out. 13

14 Further information and advice If you would like further information and advice if you are considering a mutual exchange, you can contact your Housing or Sheltered Housing Officer on You may also want to seek independent advice from a solicitor, or you can arrange to speak to someone from the Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB). CAB holds weekly surgeries at Beech House, and you can call our Helpdesk on to arrange an appointment, or you can contact them directly at: Citizens Advice Bureau 54 Lagland Street Poole Dorset BH15 1QG

15 Contacting PHP If you would like to speak to someone about a mutual exchange application, you can contact us at: Beech House Wimborne Road Poole Dorset BH15 2BU Freephone housingofficers.php@poole.gov.uk What can I do if I am unhappy with the way in which PHP has handled my application for a mutual exchange? If you are unhappy about the way in which we dealt with your application for a mutual exchange, or any aspect of the service we have provided, you can follow our complaints procedure. Please contact us for a copy of our Complaints Policy or call the Helpdesk on and ask to speak to our Complaints Officer who will explain what to do and what happens when you make a complaint. Legislative influences on the policy: Housing Act 1985 as amended by Housing Act 1996 Human Rights Act 2000 Non-legislative influences on the policy: PHP Equality & Diversity Policy Borough of Poole Housing Register Allocations Policy Conditions of Tenancy 15

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