If you are a landlord, whether with one or many properties, and they are rented out on an Assured Shorthold Tenancy there are changes under the Renters Rights Act 2025 (RRA 2025) that will come into force from 1 May, 2026. The key, but not all, changes are explained here.
The RRA 2025 impacts all Assured Shorthold Tenancies (ASTs), including both new tenancies on or after May 1 and existing tenancies. All tenancies will run from month to month until either the tenant serves notice, or the landlord meets one of the grounds for regaining possession of the property. These tenancies will be known as Assured Periodic Tenancies.
Regaining possession
The RRA 2025 abolishes Section 21 Notices and the accelerated possession process (known as no-fault evictions), with the aim of providing more security for tenants.
Section 21 Notices can still be served up to the end of April 2026, so long as the Court application based on that notice is commenced before July 31, 2026. After that date a landlord’s right to apply for a possession order based on a Section 21 Notice (even if validly served) is lost.
From May 1 landlords must use a Section 8 Notice, and rely on one of the specific grounds for possession. These include if the landlord (or members of the family) want to move into the property, or they want to sell it. Among the other reasons to serve a Section 8 Notice are grounds such as rent arrears or antisocial behaviour.
Many of the grounds have different notice periods, and different notice periods to those that applied to similar grounds prior to May 1.
Rent increases
Landlords are entitled to request an annual rent increase. This must be done by serving on the tenant a Section 13 Notice. Any proposed increase must be in line with local market rents and evidence provided if required.
If the tenant accepts the proposed increase they will start paying from the next date on which the rent is due after the anniversary. If a tenant believes the rent increase is above the market rate they can dispute it by applying to the First Tier Tribunal. However, they must do this before the start date of the proposed new rent, in accordance with the Section 13 Notice.
Advance rent payments and deposit maximums
Landlords will no longer be allowed to ask tenants to make advance rent payments. If rent is currently paid more than one month in advance, tenants will be able to continue with that advance payment schedule for the duration of their existing tenancy. It is when a new tenancy is agreed that advance payments will not be allowed.
If the tenant is unable to prove affordability to pay monthly they will still have the option of a private guarantor. The caps on the level of deposits that can be requested remain at a maximum equivalent to five weeks’ rent where the annual rent is up to £50,000, and six weeks where it is over £50,000. Landlords must continue to protect deposits in the government approved schemes.
A failure to properly comply with the protection of the deposit and provision of the prescribed information can act as a direct barrier on a landlord being entitled to repossess the property.
Pets
Any agreed existing no pets clauses will become invalid once the law is implemented. The tenants will have the right to request a pet, which cannot be unreasonably refused. It also appears that a landlord cannot increase the level of deposit to reflect the risk of damage by the pet.
Landlords will still be able to advertise the property as ‘no pets’; however, once a tenancy has started, they will only be able to refuse a tenant’s pet request under certain conditions.
Each matter will be dealt with on its own facts.
Issues that will be introduced later in 2026
There are a number of other changes under the Renters Rights Act 2025 that will be implemented, but the exact dates have not yet been set, which include Decent Homes Standards – Awaab’s Law; Private Rented Sector Landlord Database and Private Rented Sector Landlord Ombudsman Scheme
The precise details of these all require new regulations to be drawn up by government.
It is recommended that a review of, and updating to, a clear record-keeping system should be undertaken by landlords to track compliance to avoid or minimise the possibility financial penalties in the future.
By Richard Forskitt, Associate Solicitor at DFA Law
Contact Richard Forskitt on 01604 609560 or on richard.forskitt@dfalaw.co.uk, or visit the DFA Law website.
