The Renters' Rights Act came into effect on 1 May 2026. It is the biggest single change to private renting in England since the Housing Act 1988. If you own a buy-to-let in London, your tenancies, your eviction rights, and your rent-setting powers have all changed — whether you knew about it or not.
This article is a plain-English overview. No legal jargon. Just the changes that actually matter, what they cost you if you ignore them, and what to do next.
The five changes that matter most
1. Section 21 'no fault' evictions are abolished
For thirty-eight years, Section 21 of the Housing Act 1988 gave landlords a route to recover their property without giving a reason. Two months' notice, the right paperwork, and the property came back. That route is now gone.
From 1 May 2026, you can only evict a tenant by using a specific, legally defined possession ground. The grounds have been expanded — selling the property, moving in yourself, moving in family, persistent rent arrears, anti-social behaviour are all now valid. But you must be able to evidence the ground in court, and you can no longer simply end a tenancy because the fixed term has expired.
2. Every AST is now an APT
Assured shorthold tenancies (ASTs) — the standard contract used in private renting since 1996 — have been abolished for new tenancies and converted for existing ones. Every tenancy is now an assured periodic tenancy, also called a 'rolling tenancy'.
What that means in practice: there is no longer a fixed end date. Your tenant can stay until either (a) they give two months' notice to leave, or (b) you serve a valid possession notice and obtain a court order. You can no longer agree a 12-month fixed term with a landlord-favourable break clause. That structure does not exist any more.
3. Rent in advance is capped at one month
Asking for six months' rent up front to de-risk a tenancy with thin affordability has been a common workaround. It is now illegal. You can require up to one month's rent in the window between signing the tenancy and the tenancy starting — nothing more. Once the tenancy has begun, you cannot collect rent before it is due.
4. Rental bidding is banned
You must publish a specific asking rent in any written property advertisement. You cannot ask prospective tenants to bid above it. You cannot encourage offers above it. You cannot accept offers above it. The marketed rent is the maximum rent.
5. Rent increases are limited to once per year, with two months' written notice
The mid-tenancy rent rise is now a structured legal process. You can only do it once in any twelve-month period, and you must serve a formal notice setting out the proposed new rent at least two months before it takes effect. Tenants can challenge the proposed rent at the First-tier Tribunal.
The smaller changes that also matter
- Pet requests must be considered. You can still refuse, but you need a valid reason and you must respond within a set timeframe.
- Discrimination against families and benefits recipients is illegal. You cannot withhold a property, refuse a viewing, or refuse a tenancy because the applicant has children or receives benefits.
- The 'How to Rent' guide is largely replaced. Most landlords will instead need to issue the new Renters' Rights Act Information Sheet by 31 May 2026.
The cost of getting it wrong
Local councils can impose a civil penalty of up to £40,000 for non-compliance with the new rules. In some cases — particularly repeated or deliberate breaches — councils can pursue criminal prosecution. The new framework is not a soft-touch regulatory regime. Enforcement teams across London boroughs have been resourced to act.
The risk is concentrated in three places: paperwork (issuing the right notices and documents on time), evictions (using the wrong ground or filing badly), and rent (asking for the wrong amount up front or raising it the wrong way).
What this means for the average West London landlord
If you have a 2 to 4 bedroom house in Ealing, Hounslow, Fulham, or any of the other West London boroughs we cover, the practical shift is this: you have more obligations, less control over your tenant's exit, and longer exposure to any problem tenant who refuses to leave.
For landlords who self-manage, that means the operational burden has gone up materially — and the compensation for taking that burden has not. Rents are capped at one annual increase. Voids are still your risk. Court delays are still your risk. Maintenance is still your responsibility.
This is the conversation we are now having with most of our landlord clients. The Renters' Rights Act has not made buy-to-let unworkable — but it has shifted the risk profile. Some landlords are choosing to take that risk on themselves. Others are choosing to outsource it.
What we recommend you actually do
- Send the Renters' Rights Act Information Sheet to every existing tenant by 31 May 2026.
- Review any tenancy advert you have running — make sure it includes a specific asking rent and does not invite bidding.
- Audit any rent in advance arrangements. If you are holding more than one month's pre-tenancy rent, take advice.
- If you have a difficult tenancy you were planning to end via Section 21, get professional advice on the correct possession ground before serving notice.
- Take a hard look at whether the time, legal exposure, and operational stress of self-managing is still worth it for your portfolio.
Morgan Prescott was founded by former finance professionals. We do not take a commission on rent the way a letting agent does — we operate on guaranteed-rent leasing and percentage-based property management. That structure aligns us with you: we only do well when your asset performs. If you would like a free 48-hour property valuation and a frank conversation about whether guaranteed rent fits your portfolio, get in touch.