Short-term lets

Lease restrictions

Per section 11 of the Lease

  • short-term sub-letting for anything less than 6 months is strictly prohibited. This includes AirBnB-type lets.

  • Letting part of your flat (eg, one room to a lodger) or rooms let separately to unrelated individuals is also prohibited.  

Caselaw has upheld lease terms similar to those found in the Canary Riverside leases - eg:

AirBnB lettings finally put to bed

What are the legal implications of AirBnB-type short term lettings

Can a residential leaseholder use their property for holiday lets

Short lets and breach of lease

The implications of breaching your lease are potentially very serious, and can range from an injunction prohibiting any future underletting whatsoever through to forfeiture of your flat.

London law restricts short-term letting

Unless planning permission is obtained, Londoners are restricted to renting their property short term for a maximum of 90 nights in a calendar year.

The law states that in London a residential property may only be used as 'temporary sleeping accommodation' (i.e. let short term) if two conditions are met. These conditions are:

  • the total number of nights that a property is used as temporary sleeping accommodation (short term letting) must not add up to more than 90 nights in a calendar year (1 January to 31 December); and

  • at least one of the persons providing the accommodation must be liable to pay Council Tax at the property where the short term accommodation is provided.

It is unlawful for a residential property in London to be used as 'temporary sleeping accommodation' without planning permission when it doesn’t meet these two conditions. This means that any property used for short term lettings for a total of more than 90 nights in a calendar year must have planning permission from the local council in which it is based.

People letting their property in breach of this law risk local councils taking planning enforcement action against them.