Renters’ Rights Act 2026: What Liverpool Landlords Need to Do Now

Renters’ Rights Act timeline: where things stand

The Renters’ Rights Act 2025 received Royal Assent on 27 October 2025. It is being brought in over several years.

Awaab’s Law for private rentals is out for consultation until 18 December 2026. No start date has been set.

The key changes for landlords

Section 21 has been abolished

Landlords can no longer end a tenancy with a “no-fault” Section 21 notice. The window to use notices served before 1 May 2026 closed on 31 July 2026. To regain possession, you must now use a ground under Section 8.

All tenancies are now assured periodic tenancies

Assured shorthold tenancies and fixed terms have gone. Existing ASTs converted automatically on 1 May 2026, and new lets are periodic from day one, rolling with the rent period. Tenants can leave at any time on two months’ notice.

New Section 8 possession grounds

Section 8 has been rewritten to give landlords clear routes to possession where they have a genuine reason:

• Selling or moving in (Grounds 1A and 1): four months’ notice, and not available in the first 12 months of a tenancy. You can’t re-let or re-market the property for 12 months afterwards.
• Student HMOs (Ground 4A): possession between 1 June and 30 September so the property can be re-let for the next academic year. Tenants must be told in writing before the tenancy starts.
• Rent arrears (Ground 8): three months’ arrears, both when notice is served and at the hearing, with four weeks’ notice.
• Antisocial behaviour (Grounds 7A and 14): court proceedings can start as soon as notice is served.

Misusing a ground, for example claiming you’re selling when you aren’t, can lead to a fine of up to £40,000.

Rent and money

Rent increases

Rent can rise once a year, to market rate, using a Section 13 notice with at least two months’ notice. Rent review clauses no longer apply. Tenants can challenge an increase at the First-tier Tribunal, and any increase takes effect from the tribunal’s decision rather than being backdated. The government plans to move these challenges to the Valuation Office Agency, but that needs new legislation.

Rent in advance and bidding

You can’t ask for more than one month’s rent upfront, and rental bidding is banned. You must advertise a rent and can’t accept offers above it.

Penalties

Councils can issue civil penalties of up to £7,000 for a first breach and up to £40,000 for serious or repeated breaches. Rent repayment orders have also been extended.

The landlord database: what Liverpool landlords need to know

The private rented sector database, now called Register your rental property, opens on 15 December 2026. Every private landlord in England must register themselves and each property they let.

• North West deadline: the requirement starts on 15 May 2027 and you must be registered by 14 August 2027. You can register early from December.
• Cost: £65 per property per year. A 10-property portfolio costs £650 a year. It should be an allowable expense.
• Who registers: the landlord, not the agent. Agents can supply some information, but you must start and complete each registration yourself.
• What you’ll need: your personal or company details, ownership and property type, bedrooms, rent and bills, number of occupiers and households, HMO licence status, and your gas safety record, EICR and EPC. Anything missing must be added within 28 days.
• Possession: a court can’t grant a possession order unless you and the property are actively registered (antisocial behaviour grounds excepted). An unregistered property means no route to possession.
• Penalties: up to £7,000 for failing to register or keep records up to date, and up to £40,000 for repeat breaches or false information.
• Advertising: in future, it will be an offence to advertise an unregistered property, and adverts will need to show the registration number. No date has been set.

For portfolio landlords, the work is in the data, not the fee. Make sure certificates are in date and records are accurate well before May 2027.

The landlord ombudsman

All private landlords will have to join a new Private Rented Sector Landlord Ombudsman, whether or not they use an agent. The government intends the Housing Ombudsman Service to run it, and it’s expected to launch in 2028. Fees haven’t been set.

Property standards: Decent Homes and Awaab’s Law

• Decent Homes Standard: will apply to private rentals from 2035. Homes must be free of serious hazards, in reasonable repair, have adequate facilities and heating, and be free of damp and mould. The EPC C requirement for 2030 sits alongside it.
• Awaab’s Law: will set strict timescales for investigating and fixing hazards such as damp and mould. The government is consulting until 18 December 2026, including on HMOs let on licences. Start date not yet confirmed.

Planning works now spreads the cost and reduces risk, particularly on older terraced stock.

Letting and managing the property

• Pets: tenants can ask to keep a pet. You must respond within 28 days and can’t unreasonably refuse.
• Discrimination: blanket bans on tenants with children or tenants receiving benefits are unlawful.
• Written terms: new tenancies need written terms. Existing tenants had to receive the government Information Sheet by 31 May 2026.

What it means for Liverpool landlords

Liverpool has one of the largest HMO and student rental markets in the country, so these changes land harder here than in most cities.

• Student HMOs: Ground 4A only works if the right notice is given before the tenancy starts. Miss it, and you may not get possession in time for the next academic year. This matters most around L6, L7 and L15.
• Rooms let on individual tenancies: each tenant can leave on two months’ notice, so void management and re-letting speed matter more than ever.
• Selective licensing is changing: Liverpool City Council’s current selective licensing scheme ends in March 2027. The council has consulted on a new 2027–2032 scheme, including a citywide option. Licensing runs alongside the Act, not instead of it, and HMO licensing and Article 4 rules still apply.
• Database plus licensing: your database entry asks for HMO licence status. Licensing gaps will be easier for the council to spot.
• Arrears: with a higher threshold for mandatory possession, thorough referencing and early arrears management are your best protection.

What Liverpool landlords should do now

1. Check every tenancy has written terms and that existing tenants received the Information Sheet.
2. Audit your certificates — gas safety, EICR and EPC — ready for registration.
3. Budget £65 per property and diary 15 May to 14 August 2027.
4. Review rent against market rate and plan Section 13 notices, given the once-a-year limit.
5. Confirm Ground 4A notices are built into your student let process.
6. Check your licensing position against Liverpool’s new scheme once it’s confirmed.
7. Plan property works for damp, mould and energy efficiency ahead of Awaab’s Law and the Decent Homes Standard.

How Portus Lets can help

The Act rewards landlords who keep good records, follow the correct process and stay on top of compliance. We manage single lets and HMOs across Liverpool and Wirral, and we’re already preparing our landlords’ portfolios for the database.

If you’d like help reviewing your tenancies, notices, licensing or HMO portfolio, contact Portus Lets on 0151 329 3538 or email hello@portuslets.co.uk.