East Suffolk Council
Garage lettings
There are sometimes a number of council owned garages available to rent at competitive rates. Garages are for personal private use only and not for commercial activities.
Anyone can apply to rent a council garage but we do give priority to existing council tenants. However, if you are a council tenant with rent arrears, you will not be offered a garage. There are conditions that apply to you renting a garage. In areas with high demand we will not usually allow more than one garage to be allocated to a single household to ensure a fairness to other residents.
Once you have made the application you will be entered on the appropriate list and we will advise you when your turn is reached.
How long you have to wait for a garage depends on the site you want and how many other people are waiting. You will have to pay four weeks rent in advance before being given the keys and you will be required to pay with a direct debit arrangement. This is the only payment method we accept.
Council garages are intended for the storage of a motor vehicle. They are not sufficiently weather tight or secure for the storage of any other goods. You should not store petrol or any other inflammable materials in your garage and nor should you sublet your garage to anyone else.
What happens if payments aren't met
We expect tenants to pay for their garage in advance through a direct debit. We do understand that on occasions an account may fall into arrears due to particular circumstances. If this is the case you must let us know.
You can use our online service for Tenants, myHome East Suffolk, to view your garage rent account and set up a new Direct Debit.
Where rent arrears rise to an unacceptable level or an account is in arrears for too long, the council will decide to repossess the garage. Unlike house and flats, the council do not have to apply to courts for a Possession Order. We will serve a Notice to Quit on the tenant and require the keys to be returned to us within a week.
Should a garage be repossessed and be found to contain goods, the tenant will be contacted and asked to removed them. Should the council have to clear the garage, the cost of the clearance along with the cost of a lock change should one have been necessary, will be charged to the former tenant. This is in addition to any arrears outstanding.
Most arrears cases can be dealt with relatively easily if tenants get in contact early enough. Ignoring the situation only makes matters worse.
Owing to the low level of rent compared to a house or flat, some may regard garage rent as low priority. However, we have a duty to recover all rent owed to the council to fund the services we provide. We are also required to maintain overall levels of outstanding rent including garage rent, within limits set by central government.
There may also be a waiting list for garages in your area.
Ending a garage tenancy
We require one weeks advance notice if you want to give up your council owned garage. When you give us back the keys the garage should be empty and swept throughout. We will charge you if we have to clear it.
The tenancy will only be ended when the keys are returned to a council office (for which a receipt should be requested).
If you would like to give us notice on your garage, please contact us.