Landlords’ request for a guarantor increases

An interesting report claims that more than half of all landlords are now requesting a guarantor if the tenants’ affordability checks are not easily met, where previously they would have taken more than one month’s rent upfront and now cannot due to the Renters’ Rights Act.

51% of tenants say they would seek a cheaper property if they were asked to provide a guarantor and 16% would stop looking for a property. LRG, a lettings agent, said that there is ‘a significant gap in awareness’ of what is available for tenants if they are asked to provide a guarantor.

Here at Landlord Law we have our own comprehensive Guarantee Deed, members can read about it and create their own form here.

Outdoor space appeals to tenants

Rental properties with outdoor space attracts more tenants than those without, claims a new survey by CIA Landlords. 36.2% of the 72,930 surveyed had a garden. Leeds came out lowest at only 25.7% of rentals with gardens and Edinburgh was the highest with 55.5% of properties with outdoor space.

Almost three quarters of tenants take this into consideration when looking for a property to rent. Landlords, however, need to be clear to tenants on who is responsible for the maintenance and upkeep of a garden.

Rent tribunal cases surge

There is now a claim that the balance of power has now shifted to the tenant where rent increases are concerned since the Renters Rights Act come into force.

Letting agents Hamptons state that there were 166 rent tribunal cases in July this year compared to 44 in July 2025. The monthly court average was 42 decisions to late April 2026, but this has increased significantly to 129 in June.

Tenants are using this route to dispute a pay increase because it is relatively cheap for them to do so, and whilst waiting for a hearing it can delay an increase for another two or three months, and once heard, even if they lose, the rent increase (at the moment) cannot be backdated.

Hamptons say

Any proposed increase must be supported by robust evidence of market rent, including comparable local lettings, property condition, location, amenities and recent rental transactions. A clear audit trail showing how the figure was reached and ensure strict compliance with the statutory section 13 process will need to be kept.

Here at Landlord Law we have introduced the Landlord Law Market Rent and Tribunal Kit, which will help landlords navigate the new rental landscape.

The student rental market is uncertain

As we start the new academic year within the new Renters Rights Act, there is concern that the ban on rent in advance is impacting both international students and landlords. Landlords can only accept one month’s rent in advance, whereas international students or those struggling to find a guarantor can no longer pay seven months or more rent up front.

Neil McGimpsey, chief operating officer of Lomond, said

The act limits landlords to requesting one month’s rent in advance, meaning some students are struggling to provide financial assurances and therefore are finding it difficult to access the market.

Furthermore, with no more fixed-term tenancies, tenants can leave once their exams are over, leaving landlords with void periods and uncertainty.

The government, however, sees this as a positive move for giving students more flexibility, enabling them to ‘move as and when their circumstances change’.

Solar plug-in awareness for landlords

And, a final note this week on the new plug-in solar panel systems that were launched last week following changes from the government. These systems can be installed by households and plug directly into to a standard socket; they do not require a qualified electrical installer.

A warning from Risktop, a risk assessment specialist, that landlords need to make sure that they are secured correctly in external areas, will withstand high winds and bad weather and do not pose a risk hazard to others. Suitability and a risk assessment should be undertaken by landlords, and tenants should ask for landlord approval before installing them to ensure product compliance and correct installation.

No doubt we will be hearing more about these in the times to come.

Landlord Law members can find out more in our new FAQ on this.

Snippets

Landlord costs surge as income stalls – HMRC
Tenancy deposit reform ‘overlooks’ estimated £750m
HMO landlords are planning £10,000 upgrades
Croydon postpones licensing schemes at eleventh hour

See also our Quick News Updates on Landlord Law

Newsround will be back again next week

Increase in guarantor demand

Since the start of the Renters Right Act which bans landlords taking rent in advance there has been a gradual increase in tenants being asked to provide a guarantor.

37% of tenants are unaware what a guarantor is but now landlords Housing Hand Managing Director, Graham Hayward says

The fact that tenants no longer have the option to pay several months’ rent upfront is driving (guarantor) demand, with landlords now seeking an alternative form of security.

Housing Hand’s claim that 37% of renters would not know what to do if they could not pay their rent, and 33% of renters do not plan their finances for their future.

Tribunals back tenants in rent disputes

New analysis out this week by LonRes states that the average wait time from application to hearing a case at a rent tribunal is now 96 days; this increases to 142 days in London. Furthermore, two-thirds of rent tribunal cases have been ruled against the landlord, new court figures show.

Since January 2025, there have been 1,325 rent disputes, of which 73% were ruled that the proposed rent was too high, and only 18% agreed the proposed rent. 47% that went to a tribunal hearing had evidence-based discrepancies in rent increase cases.

Chris Welch of LonRes said

It can be both a costly and time-consuming process for a landlord and underscores the importance of setting rent rises correctly from the onset and importantly with a firm evidence base.

A tribunal will never set a higher rent; it will set the rent either lower or the same as what the landlord has stipulated in their notice form, but this does emphasise that landlords need to get their evidence watertight and accurate before commencing a rent increase.

Note that we are developing a new Landlord Law kit to help landlords research and set their rents and deal with tenants tribunal applications.  This should be ready shortly.

Longer delays for repossessions

Since the Renters’ Right Act came into force on 1st May this year, landlords regaining their property back claim that it is now more problematic, with 25% saying it is more challenging.

39% of landlords are now a lot more cautious when vetting a new tenant, and 9% are spending more time trying to retain good tenants. This is according to a survey carried out by Goodlord. Further research found that 41 out of every 1000 tenancy applications were suspected as fraudulent between July 2025 and June this year.

23% of landlords have seen their agent letting fees increase, and 29% have been impacted by the stricter compliance regulations and insurance costs.

Snippets

MP’s demand tougher penalties for housing associations
Council vows to ‘come after’ neglectful landlords 
Letting agent accused of leaving landlords and tenants out of pocket
Rent controls could cut supply and trap families in unsuitable homes
London landlords’ latest tactic: Inverse bidding wars

See also our Quick News Updates on Landlord Law

Newsround will be back again next week

Council consults on tougher and higher fines

Bath and North East Somerset council has started a consultation which will run until 23rd September to increase fines up to 50% where there has already been a breach for non-compliance.

They want to increase fines to start at £20,000 for electrical failures (standard penalties start at £12,000). Property licence non-compliances and over-occupation would also start at £20,000. Failure to produce a legal document would start at £ 3,000, with £12,000 fine for failing to provide a safety certificate. These fines could be adjusted by 20% upwards depending on how many properties the landlord has.

The council would offer up to 50% reduction for co-operation, early admission and complying with any remedial work within 28 days.

The Renters’ Rights Act gave councils new enforcement roles, a spokesperson said that this new policy will ensure ‘enforcement is fair, transparent and proportionate.

Rent arrears at an all-time low – claim

A report published claims that rent arrears are at their lowest level on record. Pegasus Insight states that 26% of landlords had rent arrears in the past year, which is down from 30%. Furthermore, 86% of landlords have made a profit, which is an increase of 2% from the previous quarter. This brought in rental yields of 7.02%.

Lisa Steele, Mortgage Lending Director of Paragon Bank said

Most tenants continue to meet their rental commitments, most landlords report operating profitable businesses and those are the factors that have the greatest influence on day-to-day confidence.

This is despite the Renters’ Rights Act coming into force this year, bringing many more new challenges for landlords.

Government begins recruitment of judges

It was announced this week by Sarah Sackman, Minister for the Courts and Legal Services that the government has begun recruiting 1,000 new judges and tribunal members due to the increase in demand following the Renters’ Rights Act becoming law. She has further advised that all courts will be digitised by May next year. Two new digital hubs will be created one for possessions and one for the Residential Property Chamber (still under development).

The digital possession process will be an online service for possession claims, with all relevant paperwork capable of being submitted electronically, thus cutting down delays. The minister is also setting up a non-judicial body that will determine relevant rents for each area, which, they claim, will reduce pressure on the First Tier Tribunal. This is still in its early stages though.

Pets in rentals on the rise

Younger renters have seized the opportunity to welcome a pet into their rental home, with 18% 25-34 year olds taking on a pet, with 37% planning on a pet later this year. Older renters are less inclined to take on a pet with 64% of over 55 year olds saying they have no intention of taking on a pet.

And more encouragingly, tenants are taking their pet responsibilities seriously with 93% taking active to protect their rental home against pet damage, such as fitting door gates (39%) keeping pets out of certain rooms and deep cleaning their properties during their tenancies (52%) if they take on a pet.

A spokesperson for Simply Business, who carried out the survey, said renters are taking on the responsibility seriously. Landlords can claim for pet damage via the deposit; landlords cannot force tenants to take out pet insurance under the Renters’ Right Act.

Do you have properties in Telford and Wrekin?

If so, did you know that a borough-wide additional HMO licensing scheme comes into force on 25 August 2026? It covers HMOs occupied by three or more people forming two or more households, including section 257 converted blocks.

So, for example, a property with three unrelated friends—or a couple sharing with one unrelated person—will normally require a licence. The standard fee for three- or four-person HMOs is £1,522.42, with the council’s current page offering a 10% discount for complete applications submitted by 24 August.

Find out more.

Snippets

Royal rentals fail minimum energy standards
What you should do if you missed Making Tax Digital deadline
Shock safety failures of Salford’s unregistered HMOs
Lewisham’s rogue landlord crackdown sends a warning to the PRS
Why dodgy doors are the latest casualty of the UK heatwaves

See also our Quick News Updates on Landlord Law

Newsround will be back again next week

Suddenly, you receive a letter of complaint from your tenants.

It is very long, complex and seems to quote a lot of law, some of which you were not aware of, or thought had been repealed.

You are also very surprised, as the letter writing style is quite different from your tenants’ normal communications.

You are not particularly wealthy and cannot really afford to instruct solicitors to investigate this.

What should you do?

The AI letter

It’s probable that this letter has been drafted—or substantially expanded—using an AI tool. Sudden changes in style, lengthy legal arguments and confident citations of obscure legislation generally indicate AI assistance.

However, that doesn’t mean you should not take the letter seriously. Your tenant must have been unhappy about something to have consulted AI about drafting a letter to you in the first place.

But if the letter has been drafted by AI, it is likely that some parts of it are incorrect.  As AI often makes mistakes.  The question is what parts are incorrect and what should you do about it?

If you use AI yourself, you could upload a copy of the letter and ask its advice. Although before doing so, you should remove any identifying information such as names, addresses or other personal or sensitive information.

However, you need to be careful about relying on the reply, as your AI is as likely to make a mistake as your tenant’s AI! So use your AI to help you understand and organise the letter, rather than as your only source of legal advice.

What you could do, though, if you are finding the letter hard to understand, is to ask your AI to analyse it and work out what the problem is. For example, it could be asked to provide a table showing

Analysing the letter

You need to separate out

• the problem the tenants are complaining about from
• the legal rules that they are citing, and
• the redress that they are claiming.

For example, let’s assume they allege one of the following:

• The property has damp – so you must deal with this within 48 hours under Awaab’s law and pay them two months’ compensation
• You have failed to serve a gas safety certificate on them – so they have a defence to the section 8 notice based on ground 1 that you have just served
• You have failed to serve the government’s ‘How to Rent’ booklet on them – so you cannot use any of the possession grounds
• You have failed to obtain an HMO or selective license – so they are automatically entitled to be refunded two years’ worth of rent

How should you deal with these?

The property has damp

This is certainly something you should investigate and if they are correct, deal with as soon as possible.

However, Awaab’s Law does not currently apply to ordinary private sector landlords. Nor does it provide a general rule that every damp problem must be resolved within 48 hours or automatically entitle a tenant to two months’ compensation.

There are, though, other repairing and housing condition obligations on private landlords. You should inspect promptly, identify the cause, keep written records and arrange any work for which you are responsible.

The failure to serve a gas safety certificate

This is only mandatory if the property has gas, so if the property is all electric then you are not at fault!

However, if the property has gas appliances for which you are responsible, check immediately whether the required inspection has been carried out and the certificate supplied. If not, take steps to get this done as soon as possible.

Failure to provide a gas safety certificate, though, does not, by itself, provide a defence to possession proceedings brought under Ground 1.

Also, often the reason landlords have not been able to get the inspection done is that tenants have refused access! If this is the case here, make sure you have full records of this. Then write to the tenant referring to your previous attempts to arrange access, and ask them to make an appointment for your gas engineer to attend as soon as possible.

The government’s How to Rent booklet

This has now been withdrawn by the government so landlords no longer need to serve it.

It is possible though that your tenants might be confusing this with landlords’ new obligations to provide prescribed written information about their tenancy, so check that you have done this!

The failure to obtain an HMO or selective license

If you have indeed failed to obtain this, then you are in a tricky position.

However, even if you have, tenants are not automatically entitled to two years’ rent. They must apply to the Tribunal first, and the award is decided by the Tribunal, which will take various matters into account, including the behaviour of the tenants.

So proceed as follows:

• Your property may not be licensable – so check this first. Licensing schemes vary between council areas and may change over time.
• If the property is now licensable because of unauthorised occupiers brought in by the tenants, you should ask them to remove them. If they fail to do so and are in breach of the terms of their tenancy agreement, seek legal advice. You may well have a claim to evict them along with an injunction and costs. However, you may still need to get a licence.
• If you are at fault, then apply for a licence immediately – this will protect you against claims for the period after your application was made. Before speaking to your tenants, seek legal advice.

These are just a few examples.  But whatever your tenant is alleging, try to deal with it in the same way.

Your plan of action for dealing with the letter

Depending on the actual letter and what it says, here is a suggested plan of action

1. Acknowledge the letter promptly, although you don’t need to say anything else at this stage other than that you have it.
2. Ask your AI to analyse the letter as suggested above, recording the issue, the allegation, the evidence, what they want and any deadline
3. Identify any documents or other evidence you may hold that is relevant
4. Investigate the facts—including inspecting the property if appropriate.
5. Check any legal points that they may be making. For example, take a look at the current online government guidance for English landlords (which is very good). If you are a member of an organisation such as the NRLA or Landlord Law, they may be able to help (Landlord Law members can ask me questions in our Members Forum)
6. Deal with any genuine safety or repair problem without waiting for the legal argument to be resolved.
7. Obtain specialist advice where possession, licensing, serious disrepair or substantial compensation is involved.
8. Once you have thoroughly investigated the letter and know where you stand, write back giving a clear written response addressing each complaint separately.

And finally

One way to avoid this happening in the first place is to have clear procedures for reporting and dealing with common issues. These can be incorporated into your tenancy agreement.

For example, on Landlord Law we have the following procedures which our landlords can include in their tenancy agreements

• A repairs procedure
• A procedure for application to keep a pet
• Rent arrears procedure
• Tenant ending procedure

Then, if your tenant sends you a letter which touches one of these issues, you can write back asking them to complete your procedure as provided in their tenancy agreement.

Find out more about the Landlord Law procedures here.

Fraudulent tenancy applications on the rise thanks to AI

Goodlord has carried research on fraudulent tenancy applications and it has found that these are costing landlords and letting agents £9,600 per tenancy. The loss calculated equates to loss of rent, illegal subletting.

Scamming has increased by 40% in the last year with fraudsters becoming a lot more sophisticated creating bundles of bogus documents such as bank and employment references and ID’s using AI technology building a raft of false information that landlords rely on when assessing a tenant.

A spokesperson from the NRLA said

This report should act as a wakeup call for landlords across the sector. The market is now falling prey to increasingly sophisticated types of fraud and landlords need to take every step to protect themselves from these risks.

This type of fraud is now costing the industry £4.1billion a year and rapidly rising.

Right to  buy sales increase

Government data reveals that 14,275 council homes were sold under the Right to Buy scheme in England during 2025-26, which was an increase of 90% compared to 2024-25.  Maybe this was a rush to take advantage of the right before new rules come into force.

These will increase the minimum eligibility period and reduce the discounts available.

Rachel Springall, finance Expert at Moneyfactscompare.co.uk, said

 the amount of homes sold under the scheme does create a dilemma for the wider housing market, as social housing stock needs to be replaced.

Tackling the provision of social housing was part of the first official speech from the new Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, stating “we will build more council homes”. While this comment is positive, the scale and pace to achieve significant numbers of new dwellings has to be bold to cater to high demand.

A study from the Resolution Foundation revealed that 1.3 million households are on local authority housing waiting lists, the highest number since 2014, plus, there is a near-record high of households living in temporary accommodation.

The lack of council housing means that there is usually no alternative for low-income families but to rent more expensive private sector accommodation.

Heavy fines on landlords proposed by Council

Local Authority Officials can’t just fine who they like.  They need to follow their Council’s enforcement policy.

For example, Bath & North East Somerset Council is proposing to toughen its enforcement policies as part of a policy update following the introduction of new rules under the Renters Rights Act.

Starting penalties are being proposed of £12,000 for electrical safety issues, and £20,000 for failure to comply with HMO fire standards.

They are also proposing an extra 50% to be added to the penalty under new rules which allow additional penalties to be charged where non-compliance continues.  For example, we are told that Bath and NE Somerset are looking to add 50% for

• previous non-compliance, including a financial penalty, prosecution, simple caution or warning letter;
• the breach or offence having continued for more than six months;
• alleged non-cooperation with the council, including “failing to provide a substantive response to a letter alleging an offence”;
• alleged deliberate or reckless breaches, such as knowing an offence was occurring;
• HHSRS Category 1 hazards present at the property; or
• actual harm caused to the tenant or occupant.

How to check the policy in YOUR council

Bath and NE Somerset are not the only Council drafting new policies.  Landlords are advised to check their own Council’s policy.

You can do this by doing a search on the internet on “[Your council name] Private Sector Housing Enforcement Policy” and seeing what comes up.  If, as is likely, you get a link to the policy document, check the implementation date.  If this is before 1 May 2026, then this will be your Council’s old policy which has not yet been updated to take account of the new rules. So you should check again later.

If you can’t find the policy online, your Council should let you have a copy of their policy on request.

Landlord Law members can find out more about Local Authority Enforcement action in our special kit.

More tenants using AI to create complaint letters

Reports show that more and more tenants are doing this.  However, many AI-generated letters will be incorrect.  AI has a tendency to give you what you want to hear and is known to make things up.

However, landlords and agents still need to respond to these often complex complaint letters and try to work out what is correct and what is not. Greg Tsuman, a former Propertymark President saying

With the rise of AI, we have seen a spike in complex and intricate complaints. We are now having to spend time and effort addressing multipart points and complaints that are sometimes without grounds.

AI tends to be very much user-biased – it can tell you what you want to hear, and it can lead people into a potential false sense of awareness where the complaint might be without true merit.

Tenants wanting to check the law might consider using the Renters Guide, as this is written by a solicitor (me) and is more reliable than an AI answer would be.  This site is based around questions, and if your question is not there, you can submit it for us to consider adding.

Snippets

Landlords wanted to test a new comparable properties pack
Councils complicated crackdown on HMO locations
Landlords feel unfairly blamed for housing crisis
Section 21 gas safety battle heads to Supreme Court

See also our Quick News Updates on Landlord Law

Newsround will be back again next week

Renters at a disadvantage for EV charging

A survey out this week claims that renters are at a clear disadvantage when charging their EV vehicles and have to negotiate many more hurdles in order to be in a position to have a charger at their home.

Tempcover, who ran the survey claim that 89% of home owners found charging at home easy, but it was only 72% for those who rent. 90% of home owners have home charging access, but only 69% of renters do.

Renters have to negotiate more barriers in order to have one at their home which includes high installation costs, higher electricity bills, and seeking permission from the landlord or other bodies. Renters (18%) tend to use public chargers more than home owners (9%).

A spokesperson for the survey company said that ‘closing this gap will be the key to making the EV transition work for everyone’.

Revised HHSRS framework could leave landlords at risk

Penalties of up to £7000 can now be issued by councils for category 1 hazards found in the private rented sector housing. This is following HHSRS updates on June 23rd. Inventory Base estimates that there are 504,808 rental properties harbouring at least one category 1 hazard.

Sian Hemming-Metcalfe of Inventory base warned that landlords need to keep complete and up to date records, adding

Where those records are disconnected, outdated or inconsistent, landlords and agents may struggle to show what was identified, when it was escalated and what was done about it. That is where regulatory exposure grows.

Authorities can now issue a £7000 civil penalty but this can increase to £40,000 if they take a landlord or agent to court for repeated breaches.

Some hazard statistics are as follows:-

• Falls on stairs 244,032 hazards
• Excess cold hazard 130,748
• Damp hazards 64,422 homes

Landlords and agents should continually review their assessment records and maintenance procedures so they are in line with the new statutory guidance.

Impending Finance Bill 2027 – Landlords be prepared

The new Finance Bill 2027 coming in April next year will give the HMRC powers to issue penalties to landlords for unintentional tax reporting errors. These will be known as a ‘Customer Correction Notice’ that will require the landlord to check their submissions and make any changes if needed.

If a landlord fails to make a correction or does not comply, then HMRC will treat it as a deliberate mistake and issue a penalty. Penalties can be financially severe and can also impact a landlord’s reputation.

You can read more here.

Snippets

Mydeposits moves tenancy deposit schemes to Total Property
Gas safety compliance falls for England’s social housing landlords
Landlord ignores improvement Notice and ends up in court
Rubbish-strewn rentals leave landlord £4,500 out of pocket
The end of an era

See also our Quick News Updates on Landlord Law

Newsround will be back again next week