The Renters' Rights Act, which will come into effect on 1 May 2026, represents a major overhaul of England's private rental sector. The legislation will ban 'no-fault' evictions, also known as Section 21 evictions, which allow landlords to remove tenants without providing a reason. Additionally, it will require landlords to give two months' notice to raise rent and limit rent increases to once per year, according to multiple reports.
Further tenant protections under the new law include an end to bidding wars, preventing landlords from accepting more than the advertised rent. Tenants will also gain the right to challenge rent increases at a tribunal under the Renters' Rights Act, providing a new mechanism for dispute resolution. This reform arrives against a backdrop of severe affordability pressures in the UK rental market.
5% to £1,367 in the 12 months to September 2025. A Spareroom analysis indicates that only five London postcodes still have sub-£800 average room rents, down from 81 postcodes in 2020, highlighting the capital's escalating costs. Immediate impacts have emerged since the Act received Royal Assent almost six months ago.
A Spareroom survey found that 30% of tenants who have stayed in the same rental property have had their rents increased during this period. The same survey revealed that 11% of tenants across England have been evicted or received notice of an eviction since the Act's passage. Charities report increasing numbers of landlords are evicting tenants at the last minute before the Renters' Rights Act bans no-fault evictions.
According to the renters' union Acorn, no-fault evictions made up one in five reports to the organization in October, rising to nearly one in three by January. Landlord responses are contributing to market contraction, with Pepper Money research expecting 220,000 fewer homes to rent by the end of 2026, a 5% reduction in the private rental sector. The same research indicates the Renters' Rights Act is prompting many landlords to leave the private rental sector.
1% (£48 billion) in 2025, the biggest drop this century. This devaluation reflects investor concerns about reduced profitability and increased regulation under the new regime. Experts warn the Renters' Rights Act will introduce added complexity and administrative burden for landlords.
Criticism from tenant advocates continues despite the reforms, with tenant groups, housing campaigners, and trade unions arguing the Renters' Rights Act does not go far enough to make rent affordable and that further measures are needed. Key unknowns persist about implementation and market effects, particularly regarding how many landlords will actually leave the market and what the net effect will be on rental supply and prices. The extent to which tenants will use new tribunal rights to challenge rent increases, and how tribunals will determine 'reasonable' increases, remains unclear.
Uncertainty also surrounds whether the Act will primarily drive landlords out of the market or encourage adaptation. Questions remain about tribunal effectiveness and future policy, including what specific further measures, such as rent controls or caps, are being demanded by tenant groups, and whether the government is likely to implement them. The coming years will test whether these reforms achieve their goal of creating a fairer rental market or inadvertently reduce housing availability through landlord exodus.
With the 2026 implementation date approaching, both tenants and landlords face a period of adjustment and uncertainty as the sector undergoes its most significant transformation in decades.