The Renters’ Rights Act: One Month In – What We’re Actually Seeing on the Ground
It’s been just over a month since the Renters’ Rights Act came into force on 1st May, and whilst the headlines have largely moved on, the reality of living and working through this transition is very much still playing out. At Front Door Lettings, we’re in the middle of it every day and there are a couple of things already becoming clear.
The 8-Week Notice Problem
One of the less-discussed consequences of scrapping fixed-term tenancies is how it’s landed for sitting tenants who want to move on.
Under the new rules, tenants need to give a minimum of 8 weeks’ notice to end their tenancy. In practice, for anyone trying to line up a new property at the same time, it’s creating a real disadvantage.
Think about who you’re competing with when you apply right now. Someone leaving home for the first time= available immediately. Someone relocating at short notice= available next week. Two people moving in together= available in a fortnight. Against them, a sitting tenant saying “I can move in 8 weeks” is starting from behind before the conversation has even begun. Landlords aren’t looking to leave properties sitting empty for two months, and most will take a quicker tenant over a better-on-paper one who can’t move until late summer.
We think this will normalise over time as the market adjusts. But right now, in this transition phase, sitting tenants looking to move on are genuinely disadvantaged. Our honest advice: get your notice in early, start looking straight away, and be upfront with prospective landlords, many will be flexible if they know the situation.
The Student Market Is Going to Take a Few Years to Find Its Rhythm
The student sector is where we’re expecting the biggest adjustment, and the honest truth is it’s going to be messy for a while.
Historically, student tenancies ran on a predictable cycle, properties let in the autumn for the following academic year, fixed terms clustering move-ins around July, August, and September. That model is now gone, and the new rhythm hasn’t settled yet.
Our prediction: the student letting season will shift significantly earlier over the next couple of years. With periodic tenancies, students in 2027 will be giving notice earlier than they ever would have before which will pull landlord availability earlier, which will pull student searching earlier, and so on. The old instinct of “it’ll be fine, someone always takes it for September” needs updating. We’re already having those conversations with our student landlords now.
Your Agent Hasn’t Updated Their Ads – So What Else Are They Missing?
One thing that’s hard to ignore is how many agencies are still advertising properties in ways that are flatly non-compliant with the new rules. “No DSS.” “No pets.” Fixed tenancy lengths. A month in, these aren’t grey areas – they’re basic compliance failures sitting in public Rightmove listings for anyone to see.
If an agency hasn’t updated their advertising to reflect the most visible changes the sector has seen in a generation, it’s fair to ask what else they’re missing. The ad is the easy bit. The paperwork, deposit handling, prescribed information, HMO compliance – that’s where the real risk sits for landlords.
If your current agent is still running non-compliant listings, it might be time for a conversation about what management done correctly actually looks like. We’re always happy to chat. No hard sell, just straight answers.
