Renting in lockdown? We’ve found answers to some of your questions

Here at Rightmove we’ve been sent hundreds of questions from home movers across the country.

These are uncertain times for all of us, and renters are no exception.

So to provide you with as much clarity and up-to-date advice as possible, we invited three industry experts to field your questions as part of a live broadcast, which lasted about 50 minutes.

One of our guests was David Cox, CEO of ARLA (Association of Residential Lettings Agents), who is in close contact with the government, and a specialist in all things related to lettings legislation, including the government’s most recent guidance to tenants and landlords during the COVID-19 outbreak.

READ MORE: What should I do if I can’t pay my rent?

We were also joined by Tom Kite, partner at Comfort Lettings, an established lettings business based in Nottingham, and Daniel Barea, Rightmove’s data analyst and market expert.

Some of the questions the panel helped us cover include:

• “I’m in a rental property, and my tenancy agreement is coming to an end during the lockdown. What should I do?”
• “I need to move house soon. Will this be possible?”
• “My landlord wants the property back. What are my options?”
• “What should I do if I’m struggling to pay my rent?”

A lot of ground was covered in the chat, including advice to those looking to move during lockdown, what your rights and responsibilities are as a tenant, and how the coronavirus has affected the property market so far.

You can watch the webinar in full here:

You will find that one of the main takeaways of the webinar is that you should remain in close and regular contact with your letting agent or landlord. They should be able to work with you and help things run as smoothly as possible during these extraordinary times.

If any of your questions haven’t been answered, you might want to try our COVID-19 advice page. It is important that you stay up to date with the government’s latest advice as things progress.

READ MORE: Keep your home hunting going with online viewings

Remember, the top priority is that you and your loved ones stay safe.