What Landlords Need to Know About the Renters’ Rights Act 2025

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The Renters’ Rights Bill was given Royal Assent on 27 October 2025 and is now the Renters’ Rights Act 2025.

This is the culmination of reforms first suggested back in 2022. Landlords and agents now have a clear understanding of the changes coming in 2026.

The Act will be introduced in England in three phases.

Key changes for landlords and agents in the new Renters’ Rights Act

Renters’ Rights Phase One – 1 May 2026

  • No-fault’ evictions (section 21 notices) will be abolished.
  • Assured shorthold tenancies will be abolished so that all tenancies (irrespective of when they were granted) will be periodic (i.e. rolling) with a rent period of no more than a month, with tenants able to give two months’ notice at any time.
  • Tenants will have the right to request to keep a pet at the property and landlords will not be allowed to ‘unreasonably refuse’ such consent. In an amendment to the original Bill, the new Act states that landlords will not be able to insist that tenants purchase pet insurance before giving consent to keep a pet in the property.
  • It will be illegal to discriminate against people with children or those in receipt of benefits when deciding to grant a tenancy of a private residential property.
  • Rent increases will be restricted to once a year and tenants will have the right to challenge unreasonable rent increases. Differing from the proposed changes, the government will now be able to backdate rent increases if the First Tier Tribunal becomes backlogged due to a high volume of rent increase appeals. This will prevent tenants from delaying the payment of rent increase while a determination is awaited. The government is also considering an alternative body to deal with rent increase appeals.
  • Rent in advance will be restricted to no more than one month’s rent.
  • A ban on accepting offers above the advertised market rent and bidding wars.
  • A landlord will still be able to issue a section 21 notice up to 30 April 2026 with the last date for applying for a possession order being 31 July 2026.

Renters’ Rights Phase Two – expected late 2026

This phase will introduce a Private Landlord Ombudsman which deal with landlord and tenant disputes, and private database where all landlord and properties must be registered.

Renters’ Rights Phase Three – date not yet announced

Phase three will cover Awaabs’ Law and the Decent Homes Standard.

Awaab’s Law is designed to protect tenants from serious health hazards such as damp and mould with social landlords being required to respond and fix these issues in a strict timeframe and mandates that emergency repairs must be investigated and repairs within 24 hours.

The Decent Homes Standard sets out the minimum standards that both social and private rental properties must meet according to the UK government. It requires that properties are safe with no serious hazards, have modern facilities and are in a reasonable state of repair. Its aim is to ensure that tenants have safe and decent homes and to allow tenants to hold landlords accountable for property conditions.

There is no expected implementation date for this phase as of yet.

What do landlords and agents need to do now?

Landlords and agents will need to consider how the changes in the Renters’ Rights Act may affect their property portfolio. If you will want your property back in the near future and the tenancy is at the end of or nearing expiry of the fixed term, it is sensible to consider pursuing your options to evict now before the abolition of ‘no fault’ evictions on 1 May 2026.

How Longmores can help landlords and agents with rental property possession proceedings

At Longmores, our Property Litigation team offer market-leading expertise in all private rental property matters, including possession proceedings. We can assist with securing vacant possession of properties before the provisions of The Renters’ Rights Act 2025 comes into force, and we will be ready to assist landlords with possession proceedings under the new rules.

To discuss how we can help with recovering vacant possession of a property or any other landlord-tenant matters, please contact Lindsey Reid-Cook, in our Property Litigation team, who will be happy to advise.

Please note the contents of this article are given for information only and must not be relied upon. Legal advice should always be sought in relation to specific circumstances.