No, it’s not a review of the latest film starring Jennifer Aniston. It’s a question that I’m sadly faced with all too often, says Stephen Goddard, Managing Director of A120 Lettings from Dunmow.

I appreciate the tenancy agreement for the love nest is perhaps low down on the list of priorities when a relationship breaks up, but it does have an impact on how we move forward during this personal crisis.

When a couple take on a tenancy, they both sign the agreement which means that they are ‘jointly and severally liable’ for paying the rent and other obligations under the contract. In simple terms this means that each partner has a responsibility to pay the full rent if the other partner defaults.

How do we resolve this issue, especially if we’re still tied into the fixed term period of the tenancy?

From a strictly legal perspective the agreement is binding and both parties are committed to their obligations until notice can be given at the end of the fixed term period. If the tenancy has been extended into a periodic tenancy, or there is a break clause, then both partners only need to agree on the best way to pay the rent until the end of the notice period, normally two months, before going their separate ways.

However, if this option is not open, then I suggest that a discrete call to your letting agent is in order. Although the tenancy agreement is a legally binding document, the agent may be able to broker a pragmatic solution. From the landlord’s point of view, most would rather have two happy people sharing his home, rather than a home in dispute with the potential for arguments over rent, deposit etc.

In some cases, a new tenancy agreement can be drafted, releasing one or both parties from their commitments. However, this has to be done with the full consent of all parties, and if a new person wants to share the house, a new tenancy agreement would be required.

Landlords want to maintain income from their property and so another option could be for the tenants to offer to find ‘replacement’ tenants. In this way the landlord will benefit from continued occupancy and the incumbents would be released from the current agreement.

As the Partridge family used to say, breaking up is so hard to do, but don’t despair, we may be able to save your tenancy!