The biggest change to renting in a generation came into force in May, and whether it works depends on councils that may not be ready to enforce it
Renters’ Rights Act: What Has Changed for London Tenants
For as long as I have rented in London, which is longer than I care to count, there has been a sentence at the back of my mind. It goes: they can ask you to leave whenever they like. You could be a model tenant, pay on the dot, water the landlord’s dying ficus, and still get two months’ notice for no reason at all.
That sentence is no longer true.
What the Law Did
The Renters’ Rights Act received Royal Assent on 27 October 2025 and, according to a reference summary of the buy-to-let sector, abolished Section 21 “no-fault” evictions in the private rented sector. The new regime began on 1 May 2026.
A practical guide for London tenants sets out what that means for rent. Since 1 May, a landlord can raise the rent only once a year using a Section 13 notice. You get two months’ notice, and you can dispute a rise you think is unfair at a tribunal for 47 pounds.
Tenancies are now periodic, rolling on from month to month, instead of fixed terms that end and must be renewed. A landlord who wants a tenant out has to have a legal ground, such as selling the property, moving in themselves, or the tenant being in serious arrears.
Why It Matters
It is hard to explain to someone who has never rented how much the old rule shaped behaviour. You did not complain about the damp, because a landlord annoyed by complaints could simply end the tenancy. You did not ask for the broken window to be fixed. You accepted the rent increase. The power to evict without reason was the power behind every other conversation.
Removing it changes the relationship. In principle, a tenant can now ask for repairs without fear.
In Principle
I say in principle because a right is only as good as its enforcement, and here the news is less cheering. The same reference summary reports that a Freedom of Information investigation published in April found uneven preparedness among local authorities, with only six of twenty councils surveyed confirming they were ready to enforce the new rules from the start date.
Councils are the ones meant to police bad landlords. They have had their budgets cut for over a decade. If they have neither the staff nor the money, a law on paper will not help a tenant in a flat with no heating.
The Landlords’ View
It would be dishonest to pretend there is only one side. Landlords and their organisations argue that the Act makes letting riskier. If it is harder to remove a problem tenant, and court processes are slow, some owners will sell up. Fewer rental properties means more competition for those that remain and, eventually, higher rents. The summary I have quoted notes that the market view is that the Act will reduce supply and drive up prices.
There is something in this. Small landlords with one or two properties have faced tax changes and higher mortgage costs as well as new regulation, and some are leaving. If their flats are bought by first-time buyers, that is one fewer rental but also one fewer renter. If they are sold to bigger landlords, nothing much changes.
Whether rents rise because of the Act is something we will only know in a year or two. So far, London rent growth has been slow, but there are many reasons for that.
The Rent Rise Loophole
The worry tenant groups raised during the passage of the law was that a landlord who can no longer evict without reason might simply put the rent up to a level the tenant cannot pay. That is why the tribunal route matters. If the proposed rent is above the market rate, the tribunal can set it lower.
Forty-seven pounds is not nothing, and the process is unfamiliar. But it exists, and the tribunal cannot set the rent higher than the landlord asked for, so there is little risk in challenging.
What Tenants Should Do
For those of us renting, some practical points.
Know that a rent increase must come by the proper notice, not a text message saying “rent is going up next month.”
If you receive one, check local market rents before agreeing.
Ask for repairs in writing and keep copies.
If your landlord tries to evict you, find out whether they have used a valid ground and followed the procedure. Advice charities and your council’s housing team can tell you.
Do not stop paying rent in protest. Arrears remain a ground for possession.
For Landlords, Fairly
And if a landlord happens to be reading: most tenants want exactly what you want, which is a quiet arrangement in which the rent is paid and the roof does not leak. The law has not changed that.
My Own Experience
I will say only that when my tenancy rolled over this year there was no renewal fee, no new contract to sign and no hint that I might be asked to go. That was new. I noticed the absence of dread the way you notice a noise that has stopped.
It may be that the law has unintended effects. It may be that enforcement fails. But for the first time I can ask for the extractor fan to be fixed without composing the email as if it were a hostage negotiation.
The Longer View
Britain has more private renters than it did a generation ago, and they rent for longer, including into middle age and with children. A system designed for students passing through was never suited to families. Whatever its flaws, this law accepts that renting is now how a great many people live for good.
And for a Smile
Tenancy has long been a subject for British humour. The London Prat supplies it in its English satirical news on tenants’ rights and UK satirical news about eviction notices, where you can also read the rest of my London life column. Bohiney Magazine covers the American lease.
SOURCE: https://bohiney.com/
