In the UK, most tenancies are created when both parties to the agreement, the landlord and the tenant, sign a tenancy agreement before the start of the tenancy.

However, there are some instances where a tenancy agreement does not exist, for various reasons. We recently helped a customer who relocated to the UK and found a property to rent from a private landlord who had chosen not to use the services of a letting agent in order to save a few quid. We wold usually only recommend taking a property through a letting agent but due to a dire lack of availability in the area, the customer had little choice.