Landlords: frequently asked questions

Yes, for private tenancies in England. From 1 May 2026 the Renters' Rights Act 2025 removed assured shorthold tenancies, and with them the section 21 "no-fault" route (Renters' Rights Act 2025, s 2; SI 2026/421, reg 2). Every new private tenancy is an assured periodic tenancy with no fixed term (Housing Act 1988, s 4A). To get the property back you now need a ground for possession, a valid notice on Form 3A and, usually, a court order. Notices served before 1 May 2026 are governed by transitional rules, so take advice on those. The pack's possession checklist helps you prepare under the new system: see what the Landlord Pack contains.

Possession grounds are in Schedule 2 to the Housing Act 1988, relied on in a section 8 notice (Form 3A). Common ones are Ground 1 (a home for you; your spouse, civil partner or partner; your parent, grandparent, sibling, child or grandchild; or your partner's child or grandchild, but not your partner's parents or siblings), Ground 1A (selling), both once the tenancy is a year old, and Ground 8 (serious arrears) (Housing Act 1988, Sch 2). After serving a Ground 1 or 1A notice, you must not let or market the property until 12 months after the date in it, even if you never get possession (ss 16E and 16M). See the pack's Possession Grounds Checklist, and take advice if anything is disputed.

It depends on the ground. If you rely on several, the longest period applies, unless the notice includes Ground 7A or 14. Four months for Grounds 1, 1A and 6; four weeks for Grounds 8, 10 and 11; two weeks for Grounds 12, 13, 15 and 17. With Ground 7A or 14 in the notice, proceedings can begin as soon as it is served, whatever other grounds it includes (Housing Act 1988, s 8(4) and (4AA)). Court proceedings must begin within 12 months of service (s 8(3)(c)). Always use the current Form 3A from GOV.UK. Our post on rent increases under section 13 covers the other key form, Form 4A.

Yes. A guarantee must be in writing and signed by the guarantor to be enforceable (Statute of Frauds 1677, s 4). One change applies to guarantees given on or after 1 May 2026: an individual guarantor is not liable for rent for the period beginning with the death of the tenant (with joint tenants, in set situations, some depending on whether the guarantor is a family member (s 16P)) (Housing Act 1988, s 16N). The pack's Deed of Guarantee includes a liability cap, a death clause reflecting s 16N, and a right for the guarantor to end the guarantee for the future on notice. Recommend independent advice for the guarantor, and see a solicitor if one refuses to pay.

It is a national register of private landlords and rented homes created by the Renters' Rights Act 2025 (Part 2, Chapter 3). It was not open on 16 October 2026. The government announced on 9 September 2026 that registration will open region by region from 15 December 2026, with all actively letting landlords registered by 14 November 2027 (GOV.UK news, 9 September 2026). Its regulations were still in draft. The Act's duties to register before marketing and to show database IDs on adverts, and the bar on most possession orders while unregistered (ss 82, 90 and 91), were not in force on 16 October 2026. The government says the advertising rules will follow under future legislation. Check GOV.UK.

No. The Act gives the government power to require private landlords to join a landlord redress scheme (Renters' Rights Act 2025, s 64), but those regulations have not been made. The government's implementation roadmap says the PRS Landlord Ombudsman will be set up in a later phase, with mandatory landlord sign-up expected in 2028 (GOV.UK roadmap, 13 November 2025). Until then, tenant complaints go to the council, trading standards, the deposit scheme, a tribunal or the courts as before. Check GOV.UK before each new tenancy, as dates can change. See our guide to replying to pet requests for one area where the ombudsman will matter.

Usually not. If the tenant moved in before 1 May 2026 under a written agreement, the tenancy became periodic automatically. You had to give each tenant the government's "Renters' Rights Act Information Sheet 2026" by 31 May 2026 (Renters' Rights Act 2025, Sch 6 para 7(2); SI 2026/324, reg 3). If you missed it, give it now, as a printed copy or the PDF itself, not a link. For an oral tenancy, you needed to give a written statement of its terms instead. Don't use the pack's Written Statement for a sitting tenant without advice. More in our post on the written statement of terms.

No. Terms making an assured tenancy a fixed term have no effect, and the tenancy runs as a periodic tenancy with rent periods of no more than a month (Housing Act 1988, s 4A). Purporting to grant a fixed term is also a breach that can attract a civil penalty of up to £7,000 (s 16E(1)(a); s 16I). The tenant can leave by giving at least two months' notice (less if you agree in writing), in writing by any means, including email or text (Protection from Eviction Act 1977, ss 5(1ZA) and 5A). The pack's Written Statement of Terms is drafted as an assured periodic tenancy with no fixed term, break clause or minimum period.

Very little. For an assured tenancy, rent payable before the tenancy is entered into is a prohibited payment (Tenant Fees Act 2019, Sch 1 para 1(1A)). Between signing and the start date you may take only the "initial rent", essentially the first rent period, and after that rent cannot be due in advance (Housing Act 1988, s 4B). The tenancy deposit is capped at five weeks' rent, or six if the annual rent is £50,000 or more (Tenant Fees Act 2019, Sch 1 para 2), and a holding deposit at one week's rent. Our post on holding deposit law covers the holding deposit rules.

No. Since 1 May 2026, landlords and agents must not prevent someone enquiring about, viewing or renting a property because a child would live with or visit them, or because they receive benefits, and must not apply criteria that make those people less likely to rent (Renters' Rights Act 2025, ss 33 and 34). There are narrow exceptions. You can still check affordability, taking all income into account. The pack's Applicant Criteria document lets you set written criteria before you advertise, apply them to everyone and record your reasons. Remove "no DSS" or "no children" wording from adverts and check your insurance and mortgage terms.

The Landlord Pack (England) is for private landlords letting a whole house or flat in England on an assured tenancy. It contains a Written Statement of Terms, Deed of Guarantee, Applicant Criteria and Holding Deposit Letters, Inventory and Check-in Report, Pet Request Replies, Rent Increase Worksheet, Possession Grounds Checklist, Pre-Let Compliance Checklist, How to use this pack and Read This First. It does not cover HMOs, student lets needing Ground 4A, any let needing a prior-notice ground, lodgers, holiday or company lets, social housing, or Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

No template can do that. The pack's documents are built around the legal requirements (the Written Statement follows the list in SI 2026/324), but compliance depends on what you do: completing every field, giving documents on time, protecting the deposit, doing safety checks and keeping evidence. Never change the locks or harass a tenant to leave: that is a criminal offence (an unlimited fine and up to two years in prison), or the council can instead impose a penalty of up to £40,000 (Protection from Eviction Act 1977, ss 1 and 1A). See a solicitor before serving a disputed possession notice, or if a penalty, harassment or a rent repayment order is raised. See our legal housekeeping checklist.