Mutual exchange: swapping social housing tenancies

If you rent from a council or housing association and you want to move to a different home, a mutual exchange allows you to swap your tenancy with another social tenant. Here is how mutual exchange works, who can use it, and what your landlord can and cannot do.

What is a mutual exchange?

A mutual exchange is where two social housing tenants agree to swap their homes. Each tenant takes on the other's tenancy. The legal mechanism is an assignment, each tenant assigns their tenancy to the other.

Mutual exchange is particularly useful when:

• You need a larger or smaller home
• You want to move to a different area
• You are in a property that does not suit your needs (for example, upstairs flat with mobility difficulties)

Who can do a mutual exchange?

Secure tenants (most council tenants) have a statutory right to mutual exchange under the Housing Act 1985. The right applies as long as you meet certain conditions and your landlord does not have valid grounds to refuse.

Assured tenants (most housing association tenants) have a right to exchange if their tenancy agreement gives them this right. Many housing associations' tenancy agreements do include this right.

Assured shorthold tenants generally do not have a statutory right to exchange, but they may do so with the landlord's agreement.

How do you find an exchange?

Several services help social tenants find exchange partners. The main ones include HomeSwapper and Mutual Exchange Online, which allow tenants to list their property and search for potential matches. Many councils and housing associations also maintain their own exchange registers.

How do you make the exchange happen?

Once you have found a match:

1. Both tenants apply to their respective landlords for permission to exchange
2. Both landlords must consider the applications and respond within 42 days
3. If both landlords consent, the exchange can proceed
4. Legal paperwork is prepared to carry out the assignment

Can the landlord refuse?

Landlords can only refuse mutual exchange on one of the statutory grounds set out in Schedule 3 of the Housing Act 1985. Grounds include:

• The property is too large or too small for the incoming tenant
• The landlord has possession proceedings underway against one of the tenants
• The property has been specially adapted for a disabled person and the incoming tenant does not need those adaptations
• A court order prohibits occupation

Outside these grounds, the landlord cannot refuse consent.

What happens to your current tenancy?

In an exchange, you take on the other tenant's tenancy, including their tenancy type, any conditions, and the rent level. You do not start a new tenancy; you step into the other person's shoes.

This means that if one property is larger or in a more desirable location, you are taking on whatever tenancy rights come with it. Check whether the incoming tenancy is secure or assured and what the terms are before agreeing.

Does mutual exchange affect a disrepair claim?

A disrepair claim relates to the period when you were living in the affected property. If you exchange into a new property and that property has disrepair, your repair rights apply immediately. If the property you are exchanging into has existing disrepair, report this to the new landlord before or at the point of moving in.

When should I contact Support for Tenants?

If your new or existing home has disrepair, we can advise on your rights.

Call us on 0800 030 4669. No upfront cost. You only pay if you win, and the fee comes out of the compensation, not your pocket. If you don't win, you pay nothing.

Sources

• Section 92, Housing Act 1985 (assignment by way of exchange) (legislation.gov.uk)

Related articles

• Succession rights, council and housing association tenancies