The Renters' Rights Act 2025: what changed for landlords on 1 May 2026

Compliance & regulation · 6 min read · Published 1 October 2026 · Updated 2 October 2026

In short: since 1 May 2026, private landlords in England can no longer end a tenancy with a section 21 notice. Every assured shorthold tenancy became an assured periodic tenancy, with no fixed end date. Rent can rise once a year using the formal section 13 process, bidding wars are banned, and to get a property back you now need one of the reformed section 8 grounds. This applies in England only. Scotland made its own version of this switch back in 2017, and Wales has separate law.

What actually changed on 1 May 2026

The Renters' Rights Act 2025 received Royal Assent on 27 October 2025, and its first phase took effect on 1 May 2026. The headline is the end of section 21. For decades it let a landlord end a tenancy at the end of the term without giving a reason. That route is now closed for good.

At the same time, fixed terms disappeared. Existing assured shorthold tenancies converted into assured periodic tenancies on the same day, and new lets start periodic from day one. You cannot sign someone up for a 12-month fixed term any more, even if both of you would prefer it.

Councils got the first piece of the new enforcement toolkit earlier, on 27 December 2025, with stronger powers to investigate landlords and agents.

Rent increases now run through one process

You can raise the rent once a year, using the section 13 notice, with at least two months' warning. Rent review clauses in tenancy agreements no longer work. If the tenant thinks the new figure is above market rent, they can ask the tribunal to decide, and the tribunal cannot set a rent higher than the one you proposed.

Tenants are using that right. Trade reporting in September 2026 showed tribunal market-rent decisions running at roughly four times the level of a year earlier, with tenants bringing most of the cases. The practical answer is boring but effective: before you serve a rent increase, keep a short file of comparable lets nearby, so you can show the figure is fair.

Getting a property back

Without section 21, every possession case runs through section 8 and a named ground. The two that matter most to investors:

• Selling (new Ground 1A) or moving in yourself or a close family member (Ground 1): four months' notice, not usable in the first 12 months of a tenancy, and you cannot re-let or market the property to rent for 12 months after the notice ends.
• Rent arrears (Ground 8): the threshold rose from two months to three months of rent owed, and the notice period from two weeks to four weeks.

Court time is the hidden cost here. Possession claims in England were already taking around eight months on average before the change, and every case now goes through the courts on a ground that has to be proved. Good referencing and early contact with a tenant who falls behind matter more than they ever did.

Lettings rules that catch people out

• No bidding: you or your agent cannot invite or accept offers above the advertised rent.
• Rent in advance: nothing before the tenancy agreement is signed, and at most one month's rent between signing and the start date.
• Children and benefits: refusing a tenant because they have children or receive benefits is now unlawful.
• Pets: a written request must be answered within 28 days, and a refusal has to be reasonable.

Breaches can mean civil penalties of up to £7,000, rising to £40,000 for serious or repeated failures, plus extended rent repayment orders.

What is still to come

Phase one is only the start. A national landlord register opens from 15 December 2026, a compulsory landlord ombudsman is expected around 2028, and a Decent Homes Standard for private rentals is planned for the mid-2030s. The next guide in this series covers England's landlord register.

What we would do now

Check every tenancy file in England against three questions:

• Is the deposit protected and the prescribed information served? A landlord who has not properly protected the deposit cannot get a possession order on most grounds until that is put right.
• Is there a clean record of rent paid and any contact about arrears?
• Is there market evidence ready for the next rent review?

If a landlord can answer yes to all three, the new regime is manageable. If not, it gets expensive quickly, which is one reason many owners now hand the day to day to a manager.

This guide is general information for landlords in England, not legal advice. The rules differ in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Check the current position on GOV.UK and take your own legal advice on any specific tenancy.

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