Renting by room and help with future eviction laws?

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Property118

Renting by room and help with future eviction laws?

I am struggling to understand the new Renters’ Rights Act regulations and eviction process. I hope you can help.

I currently rent 2 rooms in my flat out to two separate lodgers/tenants, and keep the 3rd bedroom in the flat for myself (though it is not my main home). The 2 lodgers (technically tenants?) have both stayed in the flat for 5-10 years.

I had known them for years, and therefore, they pay very low rent for their respective rooms compared to the market. I also pay their council tax, utilities, etc., so I subsidise their stay by paying for the bills myself.

While I have been happy with this arrangement at present (though I’m paying for bills that usually landlords don’t pay), in future, at some point, I would like to rent the whole flat out to a family as a normal rental.

Am I right in understanding that from May 2026, the new regulations will mean that I cannot request these tenants to leave the property in order to rent the flat to a single household?

What happens if one of the tenants leaves because of personal reasons, but the other decides to stay? Will I be forced to keep him in the flat indefinitely, even though he only pays for a room? Neither of the tenants have income enough to rent the whole flat themselves.

I understand I can only ask the tenants to leave if I am selling the property or moving in myself, but what options do I have if I want to rent the whole flat to someone?

If I can’t ask them to leave to rent out the flat properly, I wonder if I should be asking them to leave now, even though they are good tenants?

Rita

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Government reveals what must be included in Renters’ Rights Act tenancy agreements

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Property118

Government reveals what must be included in Renters’ Rights Act tenancy agreements

The government has released details of what information landlords must put in new tenancy agreements under the Renters’ Rights Act.

The information could be subject to change, with the final version expected in March, but is unlikely to change much before the Renters’ Rights Act comes into force on 1 May.

The government has also confirmed that existing tenancies already in writing will not need to provide a new tenancy agreement, but will be expected to provide a separate information sheet to tenants outlining the changes in the Act.

The government will publish this in March, and it must be served to existing tenants no later than 31 May.

Mandatory information to be included in tenancy agreement

New tenancy agreements will have to include mandatory information such as:

• The name of the landlord (including all joint landlords) for the tenancy and name of all the tenants
• An address in England or Wales where notices can be served on the landlord
• The address of the property being let
• The date on which the tenant is entitled to possession of the property from
• The rent and when it is due
• A statement that the landlord must serve a Section 13 notice to increase rent
• Any bills that are included in the rent
• Any bills payable to the landlord that are in addition to the rent (ie. for utilities)
• The deposit amount if one is being taken

Most of this information is already included in tenancy agreements, but the government has introduced some new additions under the Renters’ Rights Act, including the right for tenants to request a pet:

• A statement that the tenant may request a pet in accordance with Section 16A of the Housing Act 1988 and that the landlord may not unreasonably withhold consent.
• The minimum notice period a tenant must give to terminate the agreement (usually two months).
• A statement that the landlord is obligated to ensure the property is fit for human habitation.
• A statement setting out the landlord’s obligations under Section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985.
• A statement setting out the landlord’s obligations under the Electrical Safety Regulations.
• If there is gas in the property, a statement setting out the landlord’s obligations under the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations.

Landlords and letting agents could face fines

Timothy Douglas, head of policy and campaigns at Propertymark, warns landlords they must provide tenants with the required information or face fines.

He said: “For new tenancies entered on or after 1 May 2026, tenants must be provided with the Written Statement of Terms and Information.

“Also, this applies to any current tenancies that are based on verbal agreements started before 1 May 2026. This will need to be done before a tenancy agreement is signed or otherwise agree the tenancy. The information can be provided within a written tenancy agreement or given separately.

“Failure to provide a compliant written statement can expose landlords and agents acting on their behalf to enforcement action, including a fine.”

“The list of information that will need to be included has been published in a draft Statutory Instrument. This information list is a draft and may change with a final version expected in March.”

Landlords won’t need to change a current tenancy agreement

He added: “Following feedback, we are pleased that the UK government has clarified when and how the information must be provided alongside tenancy agreements. Furthermore, the Written Statement of Terms includes an address where notices can be served on the landlord by tenants.

“However, the document should include the agent’s details if one is used and be future-proofed to include space for the landlord’s unique identifier to match information on the PRS Database.

“For existing tenancies (created before 1 May 2026), landlords won’t need to change a current tenancy agreement if one is in place or issue a new one. Instead, landlords with existing tenancies will need to provide tenants with a copy of the UK government published ‘Information Sheet’ on or before 31 May 2026.

“This will be published in March 2026. The information sheet must be given to all tenants named on a tenancy agreement. It can be provided electronically or in hard copy.”

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London tenants threaten legal action over excessive heat in flats

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Property118

London tenants threaten legal action over excessive heat in flats

Possession Friend has drawn attention to Property118 about a group of tenants threatening legal action against their housing association over excessive heat.

In what could be the first case of its kind, residents living in flats managed by PA Housing in Woolwich, London, claim the flats are not fit for purpose, with temperatures reaching 43°C in the summer.

Chris Daniel, founder of Possession Friend, told Property118 that landlords now appear to face criticism whether they under-improve or over-improve their properties’ energy efficiency, particularly through insulation.

He also questioned whether the Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act was really needed, given the powers local authorities already have.

Building is inhumane

The BBC reports that residents are planning to take action against their housing association, marking the first claim filed for excessive heat under the Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018.

A resident living in Canada Court and Clifton Lodge in Woolwich told the BBC the building was not fit for purpose.

Chris Sayudo, chair of the tenant association at Clifton Lodge and Canada Court, said the buildings’ corridors reached 48 degrees in the summer.

He told the BBC: “It’s a combination of problems; the build-up of heat in the building, because there’s no real ventilation, and the fact there are leaks in the cupboards and communal areas means there is a massive amount of mould.

“Not just in communal areas, but in our flats as well, because we don’t have ventilation. There’s a built-in new air ventilation system but it doesn’t do anything. It’s not effective.”

Will be putting measures in place to monitor internal temperatures

The BBC claim when they went to film the flats last year the communal cupboards were covered in thick black mould.

However, the housing association told the BBC they have now cleaned the mould and are supporting residents.

Michael McDonagh, chief executive of PA Housing, said the issue was mainly concentrated to communal intake cupboards rather than residents’ homes.

He told the BBC: “This is an issue that, we agree, needs to be addressed across the housing sector. Like most properties in the UK, Canada Court and Clifton Lodge were designed to keep heat in rather than keep them cool.

“However, when they were built, they met all relevant planning and building regulations at the time.

“All the same, we will be putting measures in place to monitor internal temperatures at both buildings as a way of understanding whether this is just an issue during excessive heat or throughout the year so we can support residents as much as we can.”

“This is a difficult situation that the sector and the government, not just PA Housing, need to address.”

Can you make a property too energy-efficient?

Mr Daniel tells Property118 that many private landlords remain concerned about the uncertainty surrounding EPC C requirements and questions whether cases such as this show how the legislation may be interpreted in practice

He said: “Landlords will want to ensure a good level of thermal efficiency for the benefit of their tenants and their properties. However, can you make a property ‘too energy efficient’?

“Many private landlords are still concerned about the uncertainty surrounding EPC C requirements and it would seem that you can, in this case, where a group of tenants complain that flats are too hot and therefore unfit for human habitation.

“Didn’t landlords express concern about how this legislation would be used and whether there was even a need for it, given local authority powers under the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS)”

He adds: “If there could be any concerns about excess heat, then perhaps landlords add temperature checks to their morning routine and open windows before serving tenants breakfast in bed!”

When asked by Property118 for comment on the legal action case, PA Housing declined to comment.

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Discrimination against benefit tenants under the Renters’ Rights Act?

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Property118

Discrimination against benefit tenants under the Renters’ Rights Act?

The Renters’ Rights Act is trying to prevent overt discrimination (blanket no DSS policies) when private letting.

At the moment, if a tenant approaches you, and they are claiming benefits at an existing address, then this claim is tied to this specific circumstance at this particular time, i.e. at X address and X benefit subsidy is agreed according to the claimant’s own specifics.

The Department of Work and Pensions (DWP), who pay the contribution towards housing costs according to the person’s claim, will only reassess the claim and, ergo, the level of rent subsidy it will make only AFTER the tenant has declared a change of circumstance. Therefore, the tenant will have already moved and been supplied a copy of a signed AST.

How is it possible then that an applicant who is receiving any rent subsidy can provide evidence that the affordability criteria can be met until they have moved in?

The landlord has no idea what the current claim involves and how it will be affected by a change in circumstance, and neither does the DWP until it happens. At the application stage, therefore, the amount of rent subsidy that may be granted to the claimant is unconfirmed.

Given that no landlord is legally mandated to let a property to anyone who cannot prove affordability BEFORE a tenancy can be offered, is this now what we will all be focusing on to avoid accusations of discrimination when letting?

Thanks,

Reluctant landlord

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Property market sees strong start to 2026

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Property118

Property market sees strong start to 2026

The property market has rebounded at the start of 2026, with the highest number of homes for sale in eight years, according to new data.

Research from property portal Zoopla shows buyer demand has surged, although it remains 10% below levels seen at the start of 2025.

However, demand is more than 20% higher than at the beginning of 2023 and well above pre-pandemic levels recorded between 2017 and 2019.

Positive to see a strong rebound in buyer demand

According to Zoopla, 2026 started with the average estate agent having 32 homes for sale, the highest level in early January since 2018.

The growth in the number of homes for sale compared to a year ago is greatest in London, up 16% on last year followed by the South East, up 9%.

Southern regions were most impacted by Budget uncertainty which stalled sales in the final months of 2025 meaning more homes carried over into 2026.

Richard Donnell, executive director at Zoopla, said: “After a sluggish end to 2025 it is positive to see a strong rebound in buyer demand over the first weeks of the year across all parts of the country. Growing numbers of homes for sale is evidence of a strong underlying appetite to move home for many households.  Market conditions vary widely across the UK, and sellers looking to move home in 2026 need to take this into account when planning their home move.

“Across much of southern England, there is a much greater choice of homes for sale. Buyers are price-sensitive and have more choice, so achieving the best result depends on setting a competitive asking price and attracting early interest. Homes priced too high often take longer to sell and at the risk of achieving a lower price. It is important that homeowners price carefully and seek the advice of agents to plan the right strategy for their home sale.”

He adds: “Across the rest of the country there is a degree of scarcity, but sellers need to remain realistic over pricing. The market is stable rather than booming. Buyers are active but careful, which means pricing correctly from the outset is crucial. Homes that are well-presented and realistically priced continue to sell, while those priced optimistically will take longer and may need price reductions to attract interest.”

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NRLA urges clarity as Renters’ Rights Act could overwhelm courts

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Property118

NRLA urges clarity as Renters’ Rights Act could overwhelm courts

The National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA) has warned court capacity could be overwhelmed by the Renters’ Rights Act.

In a letter to the Justice Select Committee, NRLA chief executive Ben Beadle pointed out that landlords are having to wait weeks for court hearings to regain possession of their properties.

With three months to go until the Renters’ Rights Act comes into force, the association is urging the government to do more to prepare the courts.

Government has yet to define what it means by the courts being “ready

According to government statistics, it now takes an average of over 34 weeks between a landlord making a claim to the courts to possess a property under the grounds-based Section 8 process and a property being repossessed, the highest level in four years.

Mr Beadle points out that industry experts, including the Master of the Rolls, who oversees the operation of the civil courts, have warned that abolishing Section 21 “will undoubtedly create more contested possession cases than we have had hitherto” and expressed concern about how prepared the county courts are to handle an increase in cases.

In a letter to the Justice Select Committee, Mr Beadle warns that the government has not provided clarity on how the courts will be prepared for the digital possession process.

He said: “At Report Stage of the Renters’ Rights Act, the Housing Minister told the Commons that: “Court readiness is essential to the successful operation of the new system”. We agree with the Minister.

“However, the government has yet to define what it means by the courts being “ready”. Without that clarity, it is unclear what the planned digitisation of possession cases is intended to deliver or how success will be measured.

“More broadly, whilst the Master of the Rolls has indicated that the “first iteration” of the new digital platform to process possession cases is expected to be released in late Spring 2026, it remains unclear what this will look and feel like in practice for tenants and landlords, or the extent to which it will speed up the processing of legitimate possession claims.”

Government is sending contradictory messages

Mr Beadle says the government is sending contradictory messages over tribunal data, claiming it will intervene if the Tribunal becomes overwhelmed while admitting it lacks the basic information to make that assessment.

He explains: “In response to a recent written question from Lord Carter of Haslemere (HL10508), the Minister reaffirmed that the government would use the proposed safeguard in the Act “if the Tribunal appears at risk of being overwhelmed by a sharp increase in challenges” and that this would be subject to the affirmative procedure.

“However, in reply to a related written question (HL10509), the Justice Minister, Baroness Levitt, stated that HM Courts & Tribunals Service does not hold data on the average time for the First- tier Tribunal Property Chamber to consider, process and rule upon rent appeal cases, and that such data could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

“This creates an obvious tension. Ministers have said the government will intervene if the Tribunal becomes overwhelmed, which the Master of the Rolls has warned is very possible.

“However, the Ministry of Justice does not hold the basic data needed to assess the current caseload or to define what level of increase would constitute the Tribunal being ‘overwhelmed’. Without this information, it is difficult to see how the government can effectively determine when the new powers should be exercised.”

The NRLA is calling on the Justice Select Committee to question the government for more clarity on how the courts will be prepared for the new system.

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We are feeling SO trapped?

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Property118

We are feeling SO trapped?

We had planned to sell our 4 BTLs when we retired in 2015, but time seems to have slipped by, and we are still trapped with 3 of them. Two of them have been tenanted by the same people since 2006, and the third is currently vacant.

With all the nasty stuff coming down the line at private landlords, and as we are now in our mid-late 70s, we decided to grasp the nettle, and so, in the autumn of 2025, we put all 3 on the market with an agent who would list them on an auction site, hoping to sell them quickly to another investor.

None of them sold. We took the 2 that are tenanted off the market, leaving just the vacant one, where it has been ever since, sadly still with no serious interest. The interest-only mortgage ends in September, when it will either need to be repaid or we will need to find another deal.

Now we’re wondering whether we should re-let the vacant one and put the other 2 on the open market, sucking up the Early Redemption fees on their (newish) mortgages should they sell.

Our questions are:

• What is the last date we can issue a Section 21 before the Renters’ Rights Act comes in?
• What is the longest notice we could give our tenants at that time?

And should they still fail to sell within a reasonable time (since we will be covering both mortgages, full council tax x 2, vacant property insurance x 2 etc which will eat up our pension pots) would we be able to re-let them after issuing the Section 21s before the RRA comes in, or would we need to leave them empty for a year as by then the RRA would be in force?

Or … should we just stick with our good tenants (selling if/when they move out), keep our fingers crossed we can weather the legislation, the expense of getting all 3 up to an EPC C (not to mention deciphering Making Tax Difficult) and leave it to our kids to sort the mess out when we’re pushing up daisies???

Denise

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January house prices jump 2.8% as buyer confidence returns

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Property118

January house prices jump 2.8% as buyer confidence returns

The average asking price of newly listed homes jumped to £368,031 in January, marking a 2.8% rise from December and the biggest January increase ever recorded.

According to Rightmove, the £9,893 monthly increase is also the strongest rise seen in any month since June 2015.

National prices are now 0.5% above levels seen a year ago as confidence improves following last autumn’s Budget uncertainty.

Stock levels are at their highest since 2014, and a third of homes have already reduced their asking prices, signalling that competition remains intense.

Listing at higher prices

Colleen Babcock, a property expert at Rightmove, said: “It’s an encouraging start to the year to see sellers confident enough to list their homes at higher prices after several months of muted price growth last year, coinciding with more potential buyers returning to market.

“However, asking prices are only back to where they were in the summer of 2025 before the Budget rumours began surfacing, which unsettled the market and dented confidence.

“This new year, seller confidence is a good sign.”

She added: “There’s a 12-year high number of homes for sale for this time of year, so buyers have lots of choice, and a third of properties that were already on the market for sale have had a price reduction.”

Buyers return

The price rebound reflects a return of movers to the market with buyer enquiries climbing 57% in the two weeks after Christmas compared with the fortnight before.

New listings rose by 81% and the traditional Boxing Day bounce was particularly strong.

Rightmove says its platform saw its busiest ever day for traffic.

While recent demand is lower than the stamp-duty-driven rush seen at the start of 2025, it broadly matches levels recorded in 2024.

Most areas saw rises

Regional trends remain mixed with most areas recording price growth in January.

However, the East Midlands and Scotland moved against the wider pattern with month-on-month declines.

Rightmove’s mortgage tracker shows the average two-year fixed rate has fallen to 4.29%, down from 5.03% a year earlier.

That’s the lowest level since before the September 2022 mini-Budget.

The cheapest two-year deals for borrowers with larger deposits now start from 3.47%.

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Selling properties in Liverpool, Nottingham or Manchester could get you higher prices than other landlords

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Property118

Selling properties in Liverpool, Nottingham or Manchester could get you higher prices than other landlords

As we hit the middle point of January, data has started to come in about where landlords are selling, and which ones are getting higher prices than anyone else. Whilst landlords still need to be realistic on price, it seems that some areas are starting to perform substantially better than others.

Liverpool, Nottingham, Manchester and Leeds consistently came in as achieving the best results for landlords looking to sell tenanted properties. In part, that’s driven by the fact that for properties £300K and under, there’s simply more buyer options for your rental houses – you’ll likely either sell to a new landlord buyer, or a first-time buyer wanting it as a residential home. That’s first time buyers and investors both chasing the properties.

The result? Prices drive up fast, and landlord exit companies, such as ours at Landlord Sales Agency, are able to manage this to create a bidding war, resulting in far higher prices than anywhere else.

For houses in London fetching higher prices, however, the situation is substantially harder. First-time buyers can’t afford them, you’re only likely to get a smaller pool of second-time buyers, and investors don’t want to touch them. If they’re tenanted, which they mostly are, it doesn’t quite work for the auction style pricing to drive bidding wars. These are generally more suited for traditional estate agents, unless you want to wait and it take a little longer.

Put simply, the way that the market is going at the moment, landlord properties need to be in the right area for the right price. And in Liverpool, Nottingham, Manchester and Leeds, we’re seeing landlords coming to us and walking away with big wins.

For landlords who have properties in these areas looking to sell, Landlord Sales Agency specialises in helping landlords like you both overcome the problems of the Renters’ Rights Act coming into play this May 1^st, the end of Section 21 and the raft of tax penalties and new regulations.

For these reasons and more, like many landlords you’ll probably be considering selling. That’s where we come in. With years of experience in tenanted sales, and a database of over 30,000 active buyers looking to purchase anything from a single property to a full portfolio, Landlord Sales Agency can quickly match you with the perfect buyer. We send out text messages to our database the moment your property is listed with us as well as listing it on our modern online action and working with local agents.  The result is a bidding war, driving the prices for your properties up beyond what traditional agents are able to achieve in a quarter of the time. On average all our properties sell in less than 28 days.

What’s more, we’ll also make sure your property is compliant with all current regulations, essential to prevent a buyers solicitor stopping a sale in its tracks. You’ll get the tenanted sales advice and expertise that traditional estate agents rarely offer.

Our process is straightforward, confidential and designed to protect the landlord’s financial position. Whether you’re a small, private landlord, an experienced landlord or a landlord looking to retire, we’ve got the best team in the UK to assist.

So if you’re a landlord with properties in one of these areas, get in touch today.

There’s no obligation to sell, we’re simply determined to help landlords win. And it’s about time.

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Landlords: Should I stay or should I sell?

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Property118

Landlords: Should I stay or should I sell?

The Clash song ‘Should I stay or should I go’ should become the anthem for landlords everywhere because the chasm between Britain’s private landlords and the Westminster bubble has never been wider. On one side stand millions of ordinary people, often pensioners, self-employed workers or families, who have shouldered the nation’s housing burden for decades.

On the other side are MPs, tenant advocacy groups and a Labour government that treats landlords as public enemy number one.

Reading about Parliamentary debates this week on Property118 is not to read about policy issues but one-sided trench warfare.

It’s one thing to talk about the Renters’ Rights Act as a long overdue rebalancing of the sector, even a victory for fairness but there’s an inconvenient truth that the clowns in Westminster seem unable, or unwilling, to acknowledge.

When you make providing homes unworkable, fewer homes get provided.

Landlords invest for their futures

No one appreciates that small landlords are not faceless corporations and most of us are ordinary people who invested for retirement or for family security.

Many did so because self-employment offered no pension, no sick pay and no safety net.

We borrowed, maintained properties, paid tax in more ways than most people realise – this includes income tax, CGT, stamp duty, VAT on repairs – and we’ve housed millions without costing the state a penny in capital expenditure.

And for what?

The Labour government still appears genuinely surprised that landlords are selling.

This isn’t hearsay, the data has been there for years, including from bodies like Propertymark.

This week it revealed that the PRS is dominated by older, small scale landlords who are moving towards retirement.

Let’s face it, many of us simply don’t want the hassle, risk or cost of another sweeping regulatory overhaul layered on top of Making Tax Digital, licensing schemes, compliance creep and punitive enforcement powers.

Selling earlier than planned is now act of self-preservation in the face of what’s coming.

PRS isn’t a charity

I’ve said it before but let’s accept that the unintended consequence of the Renters’ Rights Act is obvious to anyone who has ever run a business.

Being a landlord is not a charity because every extra cost or risk gets priced into the rent.

If costs rise, rents rise and if risk becomes intolerable, supply falls.

That isn’t an unacceptable ideology but basic economics and it’s how markets have worked for decades.

But landlords are treated as if they are hoarding homes out of spite.

It’s ludicrous that penalties of up to £40,000 can be imposed at the discretion of councils and rent repayment orders can claw back up to two years of income for technical breaches.

Throw in confiscation orders and banning orders and more than 2.8 million landlords are subject to a compliance regime that barely existed before 1988.

Landlords forced out

It’s incredible that the housing minister Matthew Pennycook had the audacity to say ‘not all regulation is bad regulation’ when answering a question about regulations forcing landlords out.

Really? On that test, Labour’s current approach has failed by a country mile, especially for tenants on benefits, who will increasingly struggle to find anywhere willing to take them once risk and arrears become harder to manage.

In the 1980s, becoming a landlord was seen as aspiration and a way to take control, work hard and invest in the future.

For me, that dream has been slowly dismantled by the politics of envy.

Landlords are vulnerable since we carry personal debt, regulatory risk and unlimited liability without the protections that almost everyone else in the housing system enjoys.

The tedious narrative paints us as villains but we are still desperately needed to house people and keep the lights on.

So, when will ministers answer this simple question: When more small landlords sell, where exactly do the tenants go?

Social housing waiting lists are already bursting and build to rent cannot fill the gap fast enough.

If the goal is to punish landlords, fine but say it openly and don’t pretend the regulations help tenants.

Because when the last small landlord switches off the lights, it will not be MPs or campaign groups looking for somewhere to live.

Until next time,

The Landlord Crusader

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