Tenancy succession is the process of passing on a tenancy to another person when a tenant dies.
The rules around tenancy succession are quite complicated and you should always check the tenancy agreement and get advice.
Generally tenancies can be passed to:
- the surviving tenant where there is a
joint tenancy, or
- a spouse or partner who is living with the tenant at the time of death, where there is a
sole tenancy.
- If you have a protected or regulated tenancy different rules may apply so please get advice.
Council and housing association tenants
If there is no spouse or partner, the tenancy can sometimes be passed to another family member.
That person must have lived with the tenant in the property as their only or main home for at least 12 months before the tenant died.
In this case the new tenant may sometimes be asked to move to a different property, for instance if the existing accommodation is bigger than they need, or if it is adapted for a disabled person and the adaptations are not needed by the new tenant.
Get advice
If you are a council or housing association tenant, please contact your landlord to talk about your options, or an advice agency for independent advice.
Housing offices
Housing Associations in CardiffExternal link opens in a new window
For Housing queries please contact
SLUAdmin@cardiff.gov.uk.
Tell your landlord
It is important to advise your landlord as soon as possible so that Housing Benefit records can be amended. This will mean you can avoid overpayments which will have to be recovered from you at a later date. If you do not feel able to do this, ask a friend or relative to call on your behalf.