A guide to the Renters' Rights Act 2025

Rent under post Commencement Date tenancies cannot be paid before the first day of a rent period, which must not exceed one calendar month. However, clauses in pre–Commencement Date tenancies that provide for advance rent payments (exceeding one month) will be preserved.

Landlords cannot accept pre-tenancy payments other than the first month's rent and a deposit, and this can only be accepted after the tenancy agreement has been signed.

Any term in a post Commencement Date tenancy agreement that breaches the above restrictions will not bind the tenant.

To prevent bidding wars, landlords cannot accept more than the advertised rent.

Contractual rent reviews will no longer be permitted (and any rent review provisions in pre-Commencement Date tenancies will be unenforceable). Instead, landlords must use the prescribed statutory process and can review the rent no more than once each year.

The new rent must be a market rent (or lower) and will only take effect if the tenant accepts it, or after the First Tier Tribunal ("FTT") determines a disputed rent increase.

Landlords can no longer exclude those on benefits or those with children from enquiring about or taking a tenancy. When considering affordability criteria, money received from benefits must be taken into account.

All assured tenancies (other than social housing tenancies) will have an implied term that the tenant can ask the landlord for consent to keep a pet. The landlord cannot unreasonably refuse to give consent. Landlords have 28 days to give or refuse consent and may ask for additional information from the tenant. There are provisions to give the landlord extra time to deal with a request where they also need consent from a superior landlord.

Residential landlords must join a landlord redress scheme under which complaints by prospective, current or former residential tenants must be independently investigated and determined.

Landlords of assured tenancies must register with the PRS database that will contain details of matters such as banning orders or relevant convictions or prior regulatory breaches. The database could also be used to collect information about the property such as the energy performance, gas safety and electrical certificates. The data to be collected and details of those who will be permitted to view it will be set out in further regulations.

A new Decent Homes Standard (most likely based on the standards applicable to social housing) will be introduced. "Awaab's Law" will apply to the private rented sector, mandating landlords to investigate and address health hazards in rented properties within specific timeframes.

A landlord cannot apply for an order for possession without up-to-date registrations on the PRS database (unless seeking possession on the grounds of anti-social behaviour or nuisance/annoyance).

Local council enforcement powers will be strengthened, and there will be civil financial penalties of £7,000 (per breach) for first or minor breaches, and up to £40,000 for more repeated or serious breaches of the Act.

Breaches include:

• purporting to let for a fixed term
• failing to provide a written statement of terms and information before the tenancy is entered into
• accepting prohibited pre-tenancy rent
• engaging in rental bidding
• discriminating against certain kinds of tenant
• misusing possession grounds
• violating PRS database requirements
• marketing or letting during a restricted period and breaching the Decent Homes Standard/Awaab's Law.

Landlords who provide false or misleading information to the PRS database and/or who repeatedly breach the provisions of the Act will commit a criminal offence for which the local authority can impose an unlimited fine. Where the landlord is a company, officers of the company who are found to have connived in the offence will also be criminally liable.

Tenants whose landlords have committed an offence will have up to two years (up from 12 months) to apply to the FTT for a rent repayment order. The Act has expanded the list of offences by adding:

• misuse of possession grounds
• PRS landlord ombudsman breaches and database violations
• marketing, letting and licensing during a restricted period
• breaching the Decent Homes Standard/Awaab's Law

Rent repayment orders will also be imposed in cases of continuing breaches, after the imposition of a civil financial penalty.

A landlord who intends to sell their property can give 4 months' notice to their tenant requiring possession, provided the tenancy has existed for 1 year when the notice expires. A landlord cannot re-market or re-let the property for a restricted period of 12 months from the later of the expiry of the landlord's notice and the date possession proceedings are commenced.

Where the landlord of the assured tenancy is a tenant, and the superior lease will come to an end within the next 12 months, the landlord may give4 months' notice to terminate the tenancy. If the landlord is a private landlord (and assuming that their lease is not an agricultural holding or farm business tenancy), the superior lease must originally have been granted for a term of more than 21 years to use this ground.

The requirement to give notice to the tenant prior to entering into the assured tenancy has been dropped. An assured tenancy may be terminated to allow disposal with vacant possession by a mortgagee entitled to exercise a power of sale, whether the mortgage was granted prior to or during the tenancy.

A tenancy can be terminated on 2 months' notice where a landlord requires the dwelling for an agricultural worker who is either self-employed or will be working for a business operated by the landlord for a minimum of 35 hours per week. However, the definition of an agricultural worker in this context is very limited and broadly includes work only in connection with dairy and livestock farming, grazing and the growing of food. It would not, for example, include work in a farm shop or workshop.

A landlord who intends to demolish or reconstruct the whole or a substantial part of the dwelling, for which purpose possession of the property is required, can give 4 months' notice to their tenant requiring them to give up possession, unless the landlord and tenant can agree a variation of the tenancy to accommodate the landlord's works. This ground can only be relied upon by the landlord who granted the tenancy. The tenancy must have been entered into at least 6 months prior to the landlord seeking possession.

Tenants must be 13 weeks or 3 months in arrears (up from 8 weeks or 2 months respectively) for this ground to apply. The notice period has increased from 2 to 4 weeks.

Landlords of HMOs (three or more tenants from two or more households) who, prior to entering into the tenancy, provided a written statement to their tenants that they intend to rely on this ground, can give 4 months' notice to their tenants to terminate the tenancy between 1 June and 30 September in order to let to other students.

To take advantage of this ground, all the tenants in the property must meet the "student test" (i.e. be full-time students) and the landlord cannot require them to sign up to the tenancy agreement more than 6 months before they intend to start living at the property.