different house number = same property?

[20ab]

Hello there! I need your advice.
The landlord has signed a non-assured shorthold tenancy agreement with us. The property we rent has different house number with the landlord's. They are living at House number 00 and we rent the house besides theirs, House 00A, our door is behind gate door, have to pay council tax separately ( band A). The house we rent is all bills included, we don't share any area with the landlord but we live in the same house but different house number.

Could the landlord ask us to pay more than 5 weeks deposit without protecting it under government approved protection scheme? Is the agreement we signed should be assured or non-assured? Thank you.

[atticus]

... we don't share any area with the landlord but we live in the same house but different house number.

Can you please clarify.

[20ab]

The landlord lives at House 9 and we rent House 9A. The cluster house we rent is divided from House 9. But the landlord doesn't provide us separate independent door. Our door is behind the garden door of House 9. The landlord receives our letters and handover the letters to us, but our House number can be found by postcode. The house number is registered in council.

[dslippy]

'non-assured shorthold tenancy agreement' This is a strange being. Just what it is may define where it fits within the assorted regulations. It would require an assessment of just what you have, and of the detailed regulations - which from memory apply to assured shortholds.

[islandgirl]

if something is an AST it does not matter what the Landlord calls it - there is an old case Street and Mountford which is worth looking at! It certainly sounds to me like an AST...

[dslippy]

It _may_ be that the joint access stops it being an assured tenancy. It sounds like the reverse of Street v Mountford - the landlordd understands that it cannot be an assured tenancy (non-exclusive possession) but wants the beneft of being shorthold. If so, there may not be an answer to the OP's question.

[islandgirl]

I personally would think if there are no shared facilities other than a door it will be an AST whether the LL wishes it to be or not! I would think deposit must be insured and must be of the legally required amount. This is just my guess however.