Resident or non-resident: Does it matter?

If the landlord is a “resident landlord” within the meaning of the Housing Act 1988, it means that the landlord will not be able to let the property under an AST and the tenants will not be able to enjoy the statutory protection provided under the Act.  Where the accommodation provided to the tenant is self-contained, a common law or contractual tenancy will be the normal result.

The difference might appear reasonably trivial (especially now with the demise of Rent Act tenancies and less security of tenure) but it will still be important for the landlord to know what type of tenancy he has granted in order to issue the appropriate form of notice at the end of the tenancy.  An incorrect notice (issued perhaps because the landlord wrongly assumed that the letting was an AST) could delay or derail any subsequent possession proceedings.