The Landlord Law Blog

Today (31 July 2026) is the very last day that landlords can issue proceedings to evict tenants under the no-fault Section 21 procedure (save where tenants are in a breathing space).

From now on, landlords of assured tenancies will need to use one of the other statutory grounds for possession set out in the Housing Act (Schedule 2).

The possession grounds in Schedule 2

This was heavily amended by the Renters Rights Act 2025. As the no-fault ground was being removed, the remaining grounds needed to enable landlords to recover possession in all reasonable circumstances.

Note that some grounds are mandatory (where the Judge must make a possession order if the ground is made out, whereas others are discretionary (where the Judge has a discretion whether to grant a possession order).

Here are the main grounds that landlords will be able to use to recover possession moving forward. But first we need to consider

The Section 8 notice

There is now a new notice for landlords to use when seeking possession. It is form 3A. You need to be careful when serving notice that you have the correct form and have completed it correctly.

Landlords also need to be aware that Local Authorities have increased powers to issue Civil Penalty Notices of up to £7,000 or £40,000 in some cases, if notices are being used inappropriately.

For example:

Attempting to end the tenancy by a ‘notice to quit’ – maximum penalty £7,000
Attempting to end the tenancy orally (ie just telling the tenant to leave) – maximum penalty £7,000
Serving a ‘purported notice of possession’ (e.g. a section 21 notice which will now be invalid) – maximum penalty £7,000
Relying on a possession ground without reasonably believing that you will be able to obtain possession on that ground – maximum penalty £7,000
Re-letting within 12 months of using one of the two no-fault grounds – maximum penalty £40,000

There are other grounds for issuing a Civil Penalty Notice. A full list is available in the Landlord Law Dealing with Local Authority Enforcement Kit.

The two ‘no fault’ grounds

It is not correct to say that there is no longer any ‘no fault’ ground landlords can use to recover possession. There are two.

Ground 1 – where the property is required for the landlord and/or a member of his family to live in
Ground 1A – Where the landlord requires vacant possession in order to sell the property.

In both cases, possession cannot be required during a 12-month restricted period. Special rules determine when that period begins and may extend it where proceedings are issued.

Landlords who do this can also be the subject of a Rent Repayment Order.

The student ground – Ground 4A

If a letting is by an educational institution, they can use ground 4. The ground for ‘ordinary’ landlords is ground 4A. However, there are strict conditions for its use:

The tenant, or all the tenants if they have a joint tenancy, were full-time students when they signed the tenancy, or you reasonably expect them to become full time students during the tenancy
You are intending to let to full-time students when you next let the property
The tenancy agreement was entered into no more than 6 months before the tenancy start date
The property is a house in multiple occupation (HMO) or is part of a HMO
You gave your tenants written notice that you may evict them under ground 4A before they signed the tenancy
You gave your tenants 4 months’ notice of your intention to evict them – the notice period must end between 1 June and 30 September

Note that this means that many student landlords will be unable to evict students under this ground – for example if the property is occupied by just two people and so is not an HMO.

Further guidance on this ground is available for Landlord Law members, plus the Landlord Law APT agreements include an option to incorporate a ground 4A notice.

Employees – ground 5C

This ground applies where accommodation has been let under an assured tenancy in consequence of the tenant’s employment.

It should be distinguished from a service occupancy, where occupation is required for the proper or better performance of the employee’s duties and the occupier may have a licence rather than a tenancy.

The conditions for its use, and recommended procedures are:

The property must have been let to the tenant “in consequence of the tenant’s employment”.
Ideally, there should be a written contract of employment in place, which should be kept with the tenancy agreement documents.
It would be helpful if the accommodation is referenced in the job offer and/or contract of employment. If so, keep copies of this also with the tenancy documentation.
It must be clear from your paperwork that the accommodation was provided to the tenant only because they are an employee.
If the accommodation is intended only for the early part of the tenant’s employment, this should be expressly stated.
The landlord must have given prior notice to the tenant that Ground 5C may be relied upon.

Ground 5C can be used where:

The employee has left the employment, or
Where the accommodation was provided to assist the tenant in the early part of their employment and is now required for another employee.

Further guidance is available for Landlord Law members, plus Landlord Law APT agreements include an option to incorporate a ground 5C notice.

Serious rent arrears – ground 8

This is probably the ground which will be used most often. It was the ‘real’ reason why many landlords used the section 21 procedure.

It has, however, been amended:

The arrears should now be 3 months/13 weeks rather than 2 months/8 weeks
The notice period is now 4 weeks rather than 2 weeks
Arrears caused by the non-payment of Universal Credit to the tenant cannot count towards the arrears figure.

This all means that the arrears will be higher before landlords can commence the eviction procedure.

As possession proceedings can take between six and 12 months (or sometimes more) before possession is obtained, landlords should consider helping tenants to pay rather than moving immediately to eviction.

For example by

Helping tenants with claims for benefits (this website can help https://www.entitledto.co.uk/)
Helping tenants source help to pay utilities and other bills
Helping them apply for grant aid (this website can help https://grants-search.turn2us.org.uk/).

We have more detailed guidance available for Landlord Law members.

Other grounds for possession

The grounds listed above are the ones landlords will probably use the most. However, there are many others, including grounds

Where the landlord needs to carry out substantial building works
Where the landlord needs vacant possession to comply with enforcement actions
To use after the death of the tenant
To evict based on anti-social behaviour
Where the tenant has no right to rent.

Further information is available to Landlord Law members on these and other grounds.

Possession after service of a tenant’s notice to quit

Finally, although landlords cannot serve a valid notice to quit, tenants can. Amendments to the Protection from Eviction Act provide that tenants in assured periodic tenancies can end their tenancy after service of a valid notice to quit.

The notice can be served by all or just one of joint tenants and will (if property drafted) end the tenancy for all.

However, if they change their mind, or if their co-tenants wish to remain in the property, the notice to quit can only be withdrawn if

the landlord and all the tenants agree to this in writing, and
This is done before the notice takes effect.

If the notice is not withdrawn and the tenants remain in occupation after it expires, landlords will be entitled to bring possession proceedings because:

the tenancy has been ended by the tenant’s notice to quit; and
the former tenants remain in occupation without any continuing right to occupy.

Note that if you want to use this procedure, you should be careful not to do anything after the notice expires which could inadvertently create a new tenancy.

Be aware that a possession order is needed – you will make yourself liable for serious penalties if, for example, you evict the tenants yourself by changing the locks.

Detailed guidance is provided to Landlord Law members on what to do on receipt of a tenant’s notice to quit.

And finally

In view of the potential penalties for getting things wrong, landlords now need to be extremely careful about

What they say to tenants about wanting to recover possession
The notices they serve and
The eviction claims they bring.

Some cases, for example, many claims based on rent arrears, will be straightforward. Many of these claims will be suitable for landlords to bring acting ‘in person’ so long as care is taken.

However, for most situations, the safest course of action is for landlords to take legal advice and ideally use solicitors to draft possession notices and act in proceedings.

Landlord Law provides detailed guidance to members on Local Authority enforcement powers and how to bring proceedings for possession without using a solicitor.

The post Section 21 ends: what possession options do landlords have now? appeared first on The Landlord Law Blog.

Landlord Law Newsround #447

2026-07-31T08:30:49Z

Welcome to our last Newsround of July where bring you all the latest landlord related news from the past week.

The end of Section 21

Today (31 July 2026) is the very last day that landlords can issue proceedings for possession based on a Section 21 notice.

The end of an era!

Landlords who served their s21 notice but did not serve the government’s information sheet, must (if they have not issued proceedings) serve it now.

Rental behaviour shifts on pets

It appears that the Renters’ Rights Act changed the mindset for renters on admitting to having a pet until the very last minute in some cases.

Searches within Rightmove have declined 54% for ‘pet friendly’ accommodation now that a landlord cannot unreasonably refuse a pet. Fewer tenants feel the need to filter for this search, and their behaviour has shifted to discussing pets with landlords further down the process, some even at the time of signing their new tenancy agreement.

Marc von Grundherr of Benham and Reeves said that this ‘demonstrates just how significantly attitudes have changed following the legislation ‘. He added that the ‘reality is that tenants now understand the balance of power has shifted’.

Tenants are happy with their rentals – claim

A new report out by the English Housing Survey, which canvassed 14,000 private renters, states that 84% of tenants are satisfied with the repairs and maintenance of their accommodation and indeed, what rent they are paying.

Renters are also paying a smaller proportion of their wages on rent compared to four years ago. This questions the government’s claim that the PRS is ‘broken’.

David Smith, Policy Director at Residential Landlords Association said

It shows that renters are spending less of their income on housing, at 33%, down from 34% the previous year and 36% in 2014/15, and are staying in their homes for over four years on average.

It’s not so bright for younger tenants (16 to 24-year-olds) though who spend 45% of their income on rent.

Rise of rodent infestations in PRS

There has been a significant rise in pest infestations over the last five years as ongoing changes to waste collections, including separate food waste collections, coupled with ageing drainage infrastructure and increasingly larger populated areas, according to Tony King, a pest controller.

His advice to landlords is that they should act quickly if they get a rodent complaint and to be proactive when carrying out inspections. The also need to educate their tenants more on checking for signs of pest activity, how they must dispose of their rubbish correctly, and how to keep refuse areas tidy and secure. They should clearly state what the tenants’ obligations are.

Landlords need to prove that they have acted proactively, carried out repairs and obtained the help of a professional pest control company should a complaint be lodged at a local authority. Or, be able to prove that the infestation is down to poor tenant housekeeping or managing waste.

Let’s end this week’s Newsround with some positive news.

HMO landlords shine the beacon on energy efficiency

HMO landlords are leading the way in accelerating energy efficiency in their properties, with 66% of them now achieving an EPC rating of A to C. According to data published this week by Paragon Bank. 28% of HMO landlords have also brought forward improvements for energy efficiency. This is well before the government deadline of all rental properties being at an EPC C by 2030.

In addition to this, four in ten HMO landlords are proactively helping their tenants against household costs by taking on some of the increase in rising energy bills rather than passing it all on.

A spokesperson for Paragon Bank said

Energy efficiency is now a core part of how HMO landlords operate. Many are already ahead of proposed standards, which reflects a long-term approach to managing their properties.

Snippets

New Housing Minister wants even tougher rental rules
Notts council eyes tougher controls for HMOs
Town’s landlords face clean-up warning
Government admits no assessment of burden facing landlords
Britain’s uninhabitable homes: as temperatures rise, a new approach is needed

See also our Quick News Updates on Landlord Law

Newsround will be back again next week

The post Landlord Law Newsround #447 appeared first on The Landlord Law Blog.

No Rent Freeze in England—but New Restrictions on Rents and Rent Increases

2026-07-27T08:31:54Z

One thing which landlords fear is rent control. Limits on the rent that they can charge and the increases that they can make.

Starmer’s government ruled this out, and landlords will be pleased to know that the current administration has ruled them out too.

Speaking on BBC Breakfast, Housing Secretary Angela Rayner said that rent controls introduced elsewhere had not “necessarily brought rents down”.

She pointed out that the changes made by the Renters’ Rights Act were “already having a significant impact on the market”.

So what are the Renters’ Rights Act rules (applicable after 1 May 2026) that Angela Rayner is relying on?

Before a tenancy is entered into:

All landlords must give a ‘proposed rent’ in all property adverts (except ‘to let’ boards), and this is the rent that must be charged once the tenancy starts.

Landlords who fail to provide a ‘proposed rent’ or who enter into any form of ‘rental bidding’ or even if they say that they might be willing to accept a higher rent, can be given a Civil Penalty by their Local Council of up to £7,000.

It is also strictly forbidden to take any form of rent in advance before the tenancy agreement is signed. Local Authorities (normally through their trading standards offices) can issue a civil penalty of up to £5,000 if they find that advance rental payments have been accepted.

So if tenants pay rent in advance to landlords at this time, the safest course of action is to refund it.

Between the tenancy agreement signing and the tenancy start, landlords can take one month’s rent in advance only.

After the tenancy has started

If tenants consider that the property rent is more than the market rent, they can apply for ‘an open market rent determination’ provided the application is made within six months of a new tenancy start.

All assured tenancies are now periodic and the tenancy period is the same as the rental period.

So if a monthly tenancy starts on 3 July, the tenancy period will run from the 3rd day in the month to the 2nd day in the month.

Rent for that month will be payable during that period. Most tenancy agreements will require rent to be paid at the start of the period (ie on the 3rd day of the month in our example). Although, by default (i.e., if there is no tenancy agreement clause), rent is payable in arrears at the end of the rental period.

However, landlords cannot require rent to be paid earlier than the first day of the rental period. Or, in other words, they cannot require a tenant to pay February’s rent in January.

If tenants want to pay rent in advance, though, they can. So if a student wants to pay their rent up front from their grant or loan, to guard against spending it by mistake on something else, they can. But landlords cannot require them to do this – it is up to them.

Increasing rent

Finally, landlords can only increase rent once a year (with no increases permitted during the first year of the tenancy) using the statutory notice procedure set out in the Housing Act 1988, section 13.

The statutory notice is Form 4A.

There are no special rules for landlords on doing this – for example, the new rent does not have to be subject to any limits such as being not more than a certain percentage.

However, if tenants are unhappy with the new rent, they can challenge it to the First Tier Tribunal.

This is the same procedure as that used to challenge the rent during the first six months of the tenancy and the same form must be used.

The procedure is set out in the government guidance here. The most important points are that

The application must be made before the date on which the proposed new rent is due to take effect as set out in the Form 4A, and
There is a fee of £47.
Tenants must provide a copy of their tenancy agreement
The name, address and contact details of their landlords, and
(Where the tenant is challenging a rent increase) a copy of the landlord’s notice

The government guidance points out that the tribunal will need as much detail as possible to assist them in coming to a decision, so tenants should provide further information about the property (as suggested in the guidance) together with information about rents charged for similar properties nearby.

As the tribunal is currently under pressure, it is likely to be some time before the application is dealt with, but landlords and tenants can negotiate during this time and hopefully will be able to reach agreement without the need to actually proceed with the application.

However, tenants should make the application even if they are in discussions with their landlord, as if they miss the application deadline, they will have lost their chance to challenge the rent, and the proposed rent in the landlord’s notice will take effect.

And finally

Although many tenants and tenants’ organisations will be disappointed that the government is not going to proceed with rent caps, my view is that this is the right decision.

Rent caps have been shown in the past to be counterproductive. They tend to discourage landlords, which generally results in fewer properties available to rent.

For example:

Rented property in England reduced from around 80% of households before the First World War, to about 9% of households in the 1980s, which is believed to be due in part to the restrictions on the rent landlords could charge under the ‘fair rent’ rules.
The rent caps in Scotland have also resulted in a reduction of properties available to rent, and
Berlin’s 2020 rent cap reduced rents in regulated properties but was accompanied by a substantial contraction in available listings. It was struck down by Germany’s Constitutional Court in 2021 because the Berlin state legislature lacked the power to enact it.

See also our post here where we discuss some other issues.

So our advice for landlords is to be rigorous in applying for a modest rent increase annually to keep rents up to date with inflation.
Our advice for tenants is to negotiate this with landlords and apply for a review if they consider it is above the market rent.

However, note that if a tenant’s rent has been considerably below a market rent for many years and the landlord decides to increase it to the market rent level, tenants will not be able to object to this on the basis that it is a substantial and (for them) unaffordable increase.

The Tribunal can help them by delaying the rental increase for a further two months but no more.

The post No Rent Freeze in England—but New Restrictions on Rents and Rent Increases appeared first on The Landlord Law Blog.

Landlord Law Newsround #446

2026-07-24T08:55:15Z

Landlord Law Newsround finds itself in another week, let’s see what has caught the team’s eye this week.

Angela Rayner rules out rent controls in England

Angela Rayner has confirmed that the government will not be bringing in Rent Controls. Which will be a relief to landlords.

The government, she said, will be relying on the measures in the Renters Rights Act, which were “already having a significant impact on the market“.

She also said that controls which had been implemented in some areas of the UK over the past few years had not “necessarily brought rents down“.

New Right to Rent codes take effect in October

The Home Office has published revised Right to Rent codes of practice taking effect on 1 October 2026, including separate guidance on avoiding unlawful discrimination.

Landlords and agents will need to update referencing procedures and staff guidance before October. The discrimination code is particularly important where applicants have digital status, time-limited permission or unfamiliar immigration documents.

Final week for many legacy section 21 claims

Landlords relying on section 21 notices served before 1 May 2026 generally have only until 31 July 2026 to start possession proceedings—or until the notice expires, if earlier.

Accelerated possession remains available only where the transitional conditions are satisfied.

Landlords and agents should check their records to ensure that proceedings, where required, are issued in good time.

‘Poor conduct’ could impact landlords with PRS Ombudsman

Matthew Pennycook, Housing Minister, has stated that repeated bad conduct from a landlord could be taken into consideration when a case is brought to the PRS Ombudsman. He did, however, also clarify that the Ombudsman is not there to ‘punish landlords’ but will take previous landlord conduct into account based on evidence provided.

He added

The Ombudsman will have the discretion to consider the individual circumstances of each complaint, based on the evidence provided by parties involved. This could include where evidence is provided of landlords’ repeated poor conduct.

Local councils are expected to take the lead on enforcement.

Making Tax Digital deadline draws closer

Landlords with annual revenues above £50,000 will need to start completing quarterly tax returns from the 7th August, but a survey announced this week claims that out of 500 landlords and sole traders, 25% have not signed up yet to the HMRC in order to do this.

Further figures show that out of 864,000 estimated business people that need to sign up 216,000 have not even registered for the new tax regime.

Landlords have stated that this new tax will take up six days of their time over the next year. Failure to sign up will incur penalties for each missed deadline.

Social landlords still not meeting response times

A report issued this week from the government states that social landlords are still struggling to meet the legal response times within Awaabs Law for damp and mould. This is for the first phase of the legislation despite the fact that phase two comes into force on 30 November 2026.

Whilst some emergency hazard complaints were met within the guidelines such gas leaks and floods, damp and mould complaints are taking months to resolve between inspections and remedial works. This is coupled with not taking into account the vulnerability of the tenant as well. The report also details that the definitions within the legislation are not clear enough which means Awaabs Law is being applied inconsistently.

The report described ‘significant challenges in translating the legislation and associated guidance into operational practice, particularly where requirements depended on professional judgement rather than clear, objective benchmarks’.

You can read more here.

Council can predict HMO’s with serious hazards

A new licensing scheme in Slough is in consultation until September 22 on a new additional licensing scheme for smaller HMO’s with three or four tenants sharing a kitchen or bathroom. Slough Council says it can predict before the scheme comes into force that out of the 2,024 HMO’s in its borough that 22.3% will have serious hazard.

A councillor for the council said

These licensing schemes mean there are more requirements for landlords to follow. They must take all measures to provide safe, secure and habitable housing for their tenants.

The scheme will ‘improve standards’ and housing ‘that is fit for purpose’.

Snippets

Burnham won’t rule out rent freeze as part of the support package
Be aware: not all rent repayment order clams are what they seem
Renters’ chief quits, taking part-credit for Section 21 abolition
Burnham pledges to end rough sleeping in England in first speech as prime minister
Tenant fraud is on the rise, says vast majority of landlords

See also our Quick News Updates on Landlord Law

Newsround will be back again next week

The post Landlord Law Newsround #446 appeared first on The Landlord Law Blog.

Property fraud: the free protection every landlord should use

2026-07-20T10:59:57Z

One little-realised problem of being a property owner – whether for yourself to live in or to rent out to tenants – is that of criminals getting control for their own personal gain.

It is quite rare, but if it does happen, it can cause the hapless property owner massive problems and expense.

Here are two examples of cases where that actually happened.

The case of Mr Guy and the Bank

Mr Guy suffered big financial losses when his property was fraudulently transferred out of his name to a company. The company then granted Barclays Bank a charge over the land as security for substantial borrowing.

Mr Guy sought to challenge both the allegedly fraudulent transfer and the bank’s charge. However, the court held that he had no arguable case that Barclays had known of the fraud or deliberately turned a blind eye to it. The bank was therefore entitled to enforce its charge.

The case illustrates a particularly alarming aspect of property fraud: even if the original transfer was fraudulent, rights subsequently acquired by an innocent lender may be very difficult, if not impossible, to undo.

The case of the Welsh Vicar

In August 2021, Reverend Mike Hall discovered that while he was away working in Wales, his identity had been stolen by fraudsters and his house in Luton sold. Rev Hall only discovered this when neighbours alerted him after noticing activity at the property.

As reported by the BBC, he drove down to find builders stripping out fittings and a stranger telling him he was trespassing because the new owner’s name was already on the Land Registry.

His name was eventually restored to the Land Register in 2023. However, that was not the end of his ordeal.

He found people living at the property under what they believed was a tenancy and had to bring possession proceedings. He finally recovered possession in 2025, almost four years after discovering the fraud, and was left facing substantial repair costs.

When you are at risk

Cases such as these demonstrate why owners should use the fraud-protection measures now provided by HM Land Registry. You are particularly at risk if

You rent out your property
You live overseas
The property is empty
The property is not mortgaged

HM Land Registry will send relevant notices to the addresses for service recorded on the register. If those details are out of date—or the only recorded address is the property itself—you may not receive the notice in time to intervene.

How the Land Registry can help

Before looking specific services, there is another essential precaution.

Keeping your contact details up to date

It is important that HM Land Registry has your current contact details. Up to three addresses for service can be entered on the register, including an email address and an overseas address.

However, HM Land Registry provides two specific services which can help owners protect their properties against fraud.

Property alerts

You can sign up for property alerts if someone applies to change the property register. For example, to use it for a mortgage or transfer title to someone else.

A Property Alert will not prevent an application from being registered. However, it should give you an opportunity to contact HM Land Registry promptly and intervene if the activity is suspicious.

This is a free service, and you can sign up to get email alerts for up to ten properties in England and Wales.

It is strongly recommended that everyone does this for properties that they own. Even if you are living in the property as your home, there is no harm in signing up to property alerts. For example, you may have to be away for a period of time, during which time fraudsters could take action.

It is particularly important for landlords to do this, as if you have inadvertently let your property to fraudsters, you may never find out what they are doing.

What should you do if you have over 10 properties?

Probably the best thing is to protect properties where you feel you may be more at risk – for example, if you are worried about the occupiers, or your most valuable properties.
For properties you cannot monitor, make especially sure that the addresses for service entered on the register are correct. You could also arrange for post addressed to you at the property to be redirected, although this is not infallible.

Or, you could apply for a restriction.

Restrictions

Registering a restriction on your property title provides considerably stronger protection. Broadly, it prevents HM Land Registry from registering a sale or mortgage unless a conveyancer certifies that the person who signed the relevant document is the same person as the registered owner.

For companies and private owners not living at the property, there is no fee for this service. If you are a private owner living at the property, there is a fee of £40 per application.
The disadvantage is that the restriction adds an additional formality when the property is sold, transferred or mortgaged. You should tell your conveyancer about it at an early stage so that the necessary certificate can be dealt with promptly.

And finally

I have been banging on about this for years. But when I did a poll of delegates at a recent training session, four admitted that they had not registered property alerts for their properties.

Registering for a property alert is such a simple thing to do, and the hassle and expense it can save you are so enormous, that it seems extraordinary that anyone would fail to do it.

Particularly if you are a landlord.

So if you have not protected your properties, please click this link immediately; it contains details of the services provided by the Land Registry and links to apply for them.

The post Property fraud: the free protection every landlord should use appeared first on The Landlord Law Blog.

Landlord Law Newsround #445

2026-07-17T08:01:40Z

Welcome to another Landlord Law Newsround where we bring you all the latest housing news.

Quite a momentous day today as Andy Burnham is set to become Labour Leader and will enter No 10 as Prime Minister on Monday.

We will keep you updated on housing-related issues which follow. But in the meantime –

Court fees are to rise

Landlords are facing increased court fees as the government announced this week that fees will rise.

Now that annual price rises are linked to inflation, possession claims will increase from £404 to £415 and bailiff fees from £148 to £152. This is at a time when industry leaders claim that the court system cannot cope as landlords face months of delays in possession claims.

Tenants’ fees for challenging a rent increase are not increasing from the current £47.

Decline in rental properties

There has been a decline in rental properties that are currently available compared to last year, and is now lower than 1% from a year ago, but does appear to be stabilising between supply and demand. An average rental home up for rent gets 10 enquiries compared to 11 a year ago and 22 back in 2022.

Interestingly, analysis from TwentyEA reports that rental supply is at its highest level in seven years, rising by 17% in 2026. The average rent outside London is 2.3% higher than a year ago, and London rents have increased by 2%.

Affordability remains the main consideration for renters.

Number of pensioner renters set to triple

Stats out this week by the Association of British Insurers claim that one in three renter households will be pensioners by 2044. They estimate that two million more people could retire without owning their own home, raising concerns about affordability as renting brings much higher costs than those who own their own home.

Renting in retirement could significantly eat into their savings and pensions. Landlords will also face different challenges when assessing older tenants as the demographics change.

Aaron Strutt of Trinity Financial said

most people want more security, especially as far as their housing is concerned and they do not want to be moving home every few years.

He also added, ‘it is much harder when you are older and not working. It is even tougher when older people do not have a huge pension or investments providing them with a regular income.

Then there is also the question of the correct course of action for landlords to take when tenants sadly die. As death does not end a tenancy. Full guidance on this tricky topic are available for Landlord Law members in our Dealing with Death Kit (which also covers what needs to be done when the landlord dies).

Housing costs start to bite

Shelter has partnered with HSBC UK to conduct a new survey, which finds that 40% of our working population have sleepless nights over housing costs, and 53% have experienced anxiety over housing costs in the last six months.

In addition to this, 16% of people have sold things that they own in order to meet housing costs, and others are cutting down on food.

HSBC spokesperson said

We are determined to support Shelter’s vital work, ensuring that those most at risk can access practical advice and vital support in moments of crisis.

Snippets

Landlords given guidance over extreme weather risks
Rail boss to head landlord-tenant mediation service
Wales confirms plans to curb no-fault evictions
216,000 landlords and traders haven’t signed up for Making Tax Digital
Wealthy tenants lose protection under £100,000 rent rule

See also our Quick News Updates on Landlord Law

Newsround will be back again next week

The post Landlord Law Newsround #445 appeared first on The Landlord Law Blog.

Do Pre-2026 Tenancy Agreements Still Allow One Month’s Notice?

2026-07-13T11:07:42Z

One of the difficulties with the Renters’ Rights Act is that it changes the law without always making clear how existing tenancy agreements should be treated.

A good example concerns the notice period for tenants’ notices to quit where the tenancy agreement was signed before 1 May 2026. Another issue which has cropped up on our Landlord Law members forum.

This issue is about the notice period for tenants’ Notices to Quit. In particular, for tenancies that predate 1 May 2026. Thousands of assured tenancies created before the Act remain in existence. So this is not merely a transitional curiosity.

Tenancies commencing before 1 May 2026

Prior to that date, the majority of periodic tenancies were monthly periodic tenancies. The correct notice period for these was not less than one month, normally ending at the end of a period of the tenancy.

In fact, it would arguably have been a breach of the consumer law to expect tenants to give a longer notice period.

Under common-law rules, the minimum notice period was generally the same as the tenancy period. So

Monthly tenancies required not less than one months notice
Quarterly tenancies required not less than three months notice
Weekly tenancies required not less than one weeks notice.

The notice period for weekly tenancies was amended by the Protection from Eviction Act section 5 (1)(b), which provided that in all cases the notice given must not be less than four weeks.

It was not unusual, and indeed was considered good practice, for tenancy agreements to inform tenants of the notice period they had to give.

Tenancies commencing after 1 May 2026

The Renters Rights Act 2025 amended the Protection from Eviction Act in this respect. The relevant provision (a new section 1ZA, now states that a tenant’s notice to quit must be as follows

5 Validity of notices to quit.
…

(1ZA) A notice to quit satisfies this subsection—
(a) where it is given by a tenant in relation to premises let under an assured tenancy, if it is given—
(i) not less than any length of time before the date on which the notice is to take effect, not exceeding two months, that the landlord has agreed to in writing, or
(ii) in the absence of agreement under sub-paragraph (i), not less than two months before the date on which the notice is to take effect;

So the new notice period for tenants notices to Quit is two months unless the parties have agreed otherwise in writing.

The question is –

What happens to older tenancy agreements?

Will clauses in pre 1 May 2026 tenancy agreements informing tenants of the correct notice period at that time, constitute the agreement by the landlord in writing to accept a shorter notice period after 1 May 2026, as required by section 5(1ZA)(a)(i) above? Or
Did Parliament intend the new Renters Rights Act provisions to override any notice periods given in pre 1 May 2026 tenancy agreements?

The government guidance is unclear on this point and there are arguments both ways.

My feeling is that if tenants offer one month’s notice, landlords should accept this and let them go without requiring an additional month’s rent. Apart from the legal uncertainty, taking a hard line could easily prove uneconomic if the matter were ever litigated.

What do readers think? Have you come across this situation?

The post Do Pre-2026 Tenancy Agreements Still Allow One Month’s Notice? appeared first on The Landlord Law Blog.

Landlord Law Newsround #444

2026-07-10T09:05:39Z

Another week and another Newsround, let’s see what has been happening in the housing news this week.

Housing Ombudsman Service revealed

The government has announced this week a few more details on the new landlord ombudsman which will be delivered by the ongoing Housing Ombudsman Service which currently runs for tenants in the social housing sector to keep consistency within the housing sector.

Compensation figures have also been detailed which will be binding and awarded to anything up to £25,000. Tenants will still be able to pursue a claim through the courts if they wish.

No start date of exact rules have been detailed however Baroness Taylor of Stevenage, a minister in the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government said

We will give landlords sufficient notice and clear guidance before any future requirement to join the scheme comes into force. The expectation is that, ultimately, a single organisation will administer redress across both private and social rented sectors.

Heatwave could impact landlords under new laws

Landlords could now be fined up to £7000 under the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) for rental properties that overheat and cause a health risk.

Whilst installing air conditioning or fans is not a legal requirement, failure to maintain normal ventilation, such as broken extractor fans, windows that are stuck or do not open correctly and impact air flow would be a breach. This could incur a fine from the council of up to £7000 per hazard.

There is no legal maximum indoor temperature for rental properties, but if overheating causes a health risk then landlords need to act.

Jack Malnick, co-founder of Landlord Resource said

It’s not a question of a set temperature to breach, but whether the overheating is severe enough to become a health and safety hazard or make the property unfit.

Landlords need to stay on top of repairs raised by their tenants; ignoring a ventilation issue could land you with a high fine.

Disability discrimination may catch you out

An interesting article this week we felt is worth mentioning. With Section21 no longer an option, landlords now have to rely on rent arrears or anti-social behaviour possession claims. However, be warned that tenants can raise a counterclaim against these, citing disability discrimination.

Under the Equality Act 2010 tenants could argue that the reason they fell into rent arrears was due to their disability. The court must then take this into consideration and look to see if there were any steps the landlord could have taken to mitigate their arrears, taking into account their disability.

A case relevant to this is Radcliffe and Paterson, where the landlords sought possession after £8000 rent arrears. However, the judge ruled in favour of the tenant and, amongst other payments, awarded £2000 in favour of the tenant for disability discrimination and claimed that the possession order was unreasonable based on medical evidence of Miss Paterson’s health conditions.

It should be noted that disability compensation has been significantly revised from April 2025, and can range in the lower bands from £1,200 to £12,100. More serious cases can be awarded anything up to £60,700 based on the standard Vento guidelines now used.

High percentage of tenants unaware of rental reforms

According to new research carried out by TDS Charitable Foundation, 69% of tenants are unaware of the changes that have come into force following the Renters’ Right Act. More concerning is that these are the groups that are considered to be the most vulnerable, on lower incomes and those renting student accommodation or bedsits.

47% of students were unaware of the Act
78% of tenants are unaware of the new tribunal to challenge rent increases
14% of tenants aware of pet reform rules and seeking permission

The TDS Charitable Foundation spokesperson, Dr Jennifer Harris, said

Government, landlords, letting agents, advice services and sector organisations all have a role to play in ensuring renters understand their rights, know how to enforce them and can fully benefit from the protections the Act is designed to provide.

Snippets

Selective Licensing call – NRLA hits back at MPs
Landlords lose long legal battle over HMOs
How to speed up the new eviction process
Government defends court readiness amid warnings over Renters’ Rights Act strain

See also our Quick News Updates on Landlord Law

Newsround will be back again next week

The post Landlord Law Newsround #444 appeared first on The Landlord Law Blog.

Landlord Law Newsround #443

2026-07-03T08:02:17Z

Welcome to our first Newsround for July, Let’s see what has caught our eye this week.

Calls grow to end insured protection deposit scheme

Generation Rent has this week launched a petition calling for the end of insured protection deposit schemes in which the landlord or agent holds the tenant’s deposit.

As opposed to a custodial deposit scheme, where the deposit is held by a scheme provider.

This follows on from last week, when Matthew Pennycook, Housing Minister said that the insured scheme is more open to fraud and gives advantage to the landlord. Generation Rent claim that this enables a landlord to exaggerate a claim and put more pressure onto a tenant to accept any claim damage.

They also claim that in 2019 custodial deposits were 32% more likely to be disputed than deposits that are in an insured scheme.

Eddie Hooker, Chief Executive of MyDeposits says

No impact assessment, consultation paper or research has been published by the government to demonstrating its that insured schemes present a materially greater fraud risk than custodial schemes.

An insured scheme is subject to statutory safeguards.

Strangely, many landlords have told me that they use an insured scheme as it allows them to refund the deposit money to tenants quicker than it takes to get the money paid out from custodial schemes. Have Generation Rent taken this into account, I wonder?

Councils can’t enforce blanket HMO license conditions, says Upper Tribunal

The Portsmouth & District Private Landlords Association (PDPLA) have won a significant victory over Portsmouth Council over the conditions they have been imposing on landlords in HMO licenses, which have resulted in many small HMO landlords selling up.

The decision confirms that Councils cannot, through license conditions:

prescribe the detailed content of tenancy agreements
make it an offence to provide documents unless the request is made via a 235 notice
require landlords to provide tenants’ personal information to the Council
apply discretionary licence conditions on a blanket basis across all HMOs – ‘standard’ conditions must be supported by property-specific reasoning

Landlord Simon Fletcher, who took the case to tribunal, said:

We hope this decision will be noted across the country as a large number of councils impose conditions on a blanket policy basis without proper justification.

This is too little too late to make any real difference to the overall PRS landlord exodus; but we hope that it will prove useful in helping to ensure responsible and experienced landlords remaining in the sector are not overly burdened by over-zealous councils.

PRS Database fees to fund enforcement – claim

Matthew Pennycook, the Housing Minister, has this week stated that in order to continue to help support councils in carrying out enforcement in addition to providing £41.12 million to local housing authorities for financial help to undertake enforcement, the government’s long-term objective is to have a sustainable fund for enforcement ‘based on future Private Rented Sector Database fee revenues’.

This could mean that fees from the new PRS Database may fund future council enforcement as they continue to give more powers to local councils. Fees for the new database have yet to be announced.

Snippets

Quiet enjoyment vs essential access: Striking the right
Landlord fined after repeatedly ignoring improvement notices
Latest licensing costs for landlords revealed
Fraudsters target homes in title hijack attempts
Government claims tribunal rent system protects tenants from arrears
Govt warns landlords and agents against Right to Rent discrimination

See also our Quick News Updates on Landlord Law

Newsround will be back again next week

The post Landlord Law Newsround #443 appeared first on The Landlord Law Blog.

Landlord Law Blog Roundup for June

2026-07-02T09:36:40Z

Here are all our posts for June

Monday 1st June

Property Inspections: What every landlord needs to check

Read why landlords need to do inspections

Landlord Law Blog Roundup for May

Our roundup of posts for May

Friday 5th June

Landlord Law Newsround #439

Our first Newsround for June

Sunday 7th June

Can this landlord sue a former tenant for damage and a flea infestation?

This was a question asked via my Blog Clinic

Friday 12th June

Landlord Law Newsround #440

Our weekly housing news update

Sunday 14th June

Pet requests under the Renters’ Rights Act: A Cautionary Tale

Read my blog on cats as pets

Tuesday 19th June

Rent-to-rent: What every landlord needs to know

Know where you stand if you rent-to-rent

Friday 19th June

Landlord Law Newsround #441

Read our blog on what’s happening in the housing news

Thursday 25th June

Before you test a Renters’ Rights Act Loophole….

Read my blog on testing the Act before the courts have ruled on it

Friday 26th June

Landlord Law Newsround #442

Our last Newsround for June

Housing Law Handbook 6th Edition by Diane Astin

2026-07-01T13:04:50Z

With a change in the law come new textbooks, and I was delighted to be given the opportunity to review one of the first of these.

Namely, the 6th Edition of Diane Austin’s massive Housing Law Casebook.

This, I think, can safely be described as a ‘tome’ (defined by my Google AI as a ‘large, heavy or scholarly book’). I just measured its thickness, which is 2 ¼ inches, nearly 6 cm. So a hefty volume indeed, as befits an area of law where regulation has increased massively over the years.

One of the reasons it is so large is that it covers not only tenancies under the Housing Act 1988 (which will now be assured periodic tenancies) but also Rent Act protected tenancies and long leases, as well as social housing, public law and housing, plus a large section on homelessness.

That’s a big area of law. So a very useful book for practitioners.

The book is written from the perspective of a tenants’ adviser and so will be particularly useful for solicitors and others advising tenants.

However, the law is the law whoever you are advising, so this book will be equally useful for landlord advisers, even though it is not specifically aimed at you. After all, understanding the arguments that will be advanced on behalf of tenants is one of the best ways to advise landlords!

This book will also be particularly useful for Local Authority staff, who will have a tough job enforcing the new laws introduced by the Renters Rights Act, given their new legal obligations. Having such a comprehensive reference work readily available is likely to prove extremely useful.

I would suggest that all Local Authority housing departments should have a copy on their shelves (a steal at £85 for the print version or £115 for the print + eBook.bundle). Which is considerably cheaper than getting advice from solicitors or barristers.

Although this is a large and scholarly book, it is also user-friendly, with case law helpfully highlighted on a light grey background and lots of summaries and bulleted lists, making it easy to navigate.

Ms Austin is to be congratulated on bringing out such a helpful and authoritative book so soon after the introduction of the new Renters Rights Act rules.

Find it in the LAG shop or on Amazon, where you can also get a Kindle edition for £80.75.

PS. I also really like the fact that the cover picture has a cat in the window. Maybe reflecting tenants’ enhanced right to keep pets?

The post Housing Law Handbook 6th Edition by Diane Astin appeared first on The Landlord Law Blog.

The Landlord Law Blog

Landlord Law Blog Roundup for July

Wednesday 1st July

Thursday 2nd July

Friday 3rd July

Friday 10th July

Monday 13th July

Friday 17th July

Monday 20th July

Friday 24th July

Monday July 27th

Friday 31st July

Landlord Law News Blog

Further Reading

Section 21 ends: what possession options do landlords have now?

The possession grounds in Schedule 2

The Section 8 notice

The two ‘no fault’ grounds

The student ground – Ground 4A

Employees – ground 5C

Serious rent arrears – ground 8

Other grounds for possession

Possession after service of a tenant’s notice to quit

And finally

Landlord Law Newsround #447

The end of Section 21

Rental behaviour shifts on pets

Tenants are happy with their rentals – claim

Rise of rodent infestations in PRS

HMO landlords shine the beacon on energy efficiency

Snippets

No Rent Freeze in England—but New Restrictions on Rents and Rent Increases

Before a tenancy is entered into:

After the tenancy has started

Increasing rent

And finally

For example:

Landlord Law Newsround #446

Angela Rayner rules out rent controls in England

New Right to Rent codes take effect in October

Final week for many legacy section 21 claims

‘Poor conduct’ could impact landlords with PRS Ombudsman

Making Tax Digital deadline draws closer

Social landlords still not meeting response times

Council can predict HMO’s with serious hazards

Snippets

Property fraud: the free protection every landlord should use

The case of Mr Guy and the Bank

The case of the Welsh Vicar

When you are at risk

How the Land Registry can help

Keeping your contact details up to date

Property alerts

What should you do if you have over 10 properties?

Restrictions

And finally

Landlord Law Newsround #445

Court fees are to rise

Decline in rental properties

Number of pensioner renters set to triple

Housing costs start to bite

Snippets

Do Pre-2026 Tenancy Agreements Still Allow One Month’s Notice?

Tenancies commencing before 1 May 2026

Tenancies commencing after 1 May 2026

What happens to older tenancy agreements?

Landlord Law Newsround #444

Housing Ombudsman Service revealed

Heatwave could impact landlords under new laws

Disability discrimination may catch you out

High percentage of tenants unaware of rental reforms

Snippets

Landlord Law Newsround #443

Calls grow to end insured protection deposit scheme

Councils can’t enforce blanket HMO license conditions, says Upper Tribunal

PRS Database fees to fund enforcement – claim

Snippets

Landlord Law Blog Roundup for June

Monday 1st June

Friday 5th June