The top 6 Renters’ Rights Act questions from landlords

The Renters’ Rights Act is now a mere fortnight away, and there’s a lot of confusion and incorrect information around. We’re clearly moving into “peak panic”.

The lawyer in me is very matter of fact about it. Sure, the rules are changing and the Act will introduce another layer of complex rules on top of what I call a “mutant layer cake”, of overlapping primary and secondary legislation. “Simpler regulation” it is not, Mr Pennycook. 

But if we want to stay in business, we first need to understand the rules, and then we need to adapt.

I therefore decided to pull together the top half dozen questions I’ve been receiving from landlords into this blog post, with links to more information, to help everyone prepare.

If you’re looking for more guidance, my bestselling book, The Good Landlord Handbook, takes you through each stage of the tenancy cycle, with the rules in the Renters’ Rights Act fully integrated.

If you have questions, you can ask me at twice-monthly livestreams in my membership, The Independent Landlord Hub.

1. Do I need to reissue tenancy agreements on 1 May?

No, and this is the single biggest misconception I’ve been seeing.

Your existing ASTs continue as they are. On 1 May they automatically become the new assured periodic tenancies by operation of law. The Renters’ Rights Act treats them as a single, continuing tenancy (see s.148 RRA).

The fixed term clause will be ignored. Any rent review clause will become invalid going forward. Any clause banning pets will be invalid.

You don’t need to re-paper, you don’t need a memorandum, and you don’t need your tenants to sign anything new. In fact, the government guidance clearly states: “The legislation does not require you to change or re-issue any existing written tenancy agreement.”

Also, issuing a fresh tenancy agreement now is not a good idea. The tenant would need to surrender the old one, and the clock would re-set for notice periods.

The one thing you do need to do is serve the Information Sheet, and if you have an oral agreement, serve a written statement of terms by 31 May.

>> Related Post: Renters’ Rights Act: Tenant Information Sheet explained

>> Related Post: Renters’ Rights: The new Written Statement of Terms

2. How do I serve the Information Sheet?

The Information Sheet is causing a lot of head-scratching, with people over-thinking it. But it’s genuinely straightforward:

1. Go to this page on GOV.UK, and download the PDF of the Information Sheet.
2. Do not amend the Information Sheet, or rebrand it. The Information Sheet is only valid when downloaded from that page.
3. Give the exact copy of this PDF to every tenant named on the tenancy agreement. It doesn’t matter if they’ve moved out. You do not need to send it to “permitted occupiers”.
4. The government guidance doesn’t say you need to serve it to guarantors, but I would do so, as that’s best practice and means the guarantor has the same information as the tenant.
5. You can print out a hard copy, and hand it to them or post it. If posting, do it from the post office and get a certificate of posting.
6. The government guidance says you can email or message them the Information Sheet, by attaching the PDF.
7. You do not need a signed acknowledgement or a confirmation of receipt. Keep a record of how you served it. Confirmation of receipt is nice to have, but so long as you can prove you have served it, that’s OK.
8. If you use a letting agent for full management, they have a legal obligation to send it on your behalf, even if you’ve already sent it. Ask your agent for proof they’ve sent it, as the primary obligation sits with the landlord.
9. You can send it straight away – no need to wait until 1 May. (This is confirmed in the government guidance, and the transitional provisions in the RRA just say it needs to be served “before the end of the period of one month beginning with the commencement date”, ie 31 May).

>> Related Post: Renters’ Rights Act: Tenant Information Sheet explained

The Good Landlord Handbook

This post covers the top 6 questions. The Good Landlord Handbook covers the rest.

For practical guidance on every stage of a tenancy under the Renters’ Rights Act, read my book ‘The Good Landlord Handbook’:

🔹 “A true landlording bible“
🔹 Covers every stage of a tenancy
🔹 Renters’ Rights Act integrated throughout
🔹 #1 bestseller on Amazon

Buy the book

3. What happens to rent increases?

From 1 May, the only way to increase rent will be by using the process in Section 13 of the Housing Act 1988, using the new Form 4A.

A few points worth noting:

• The applicable form is the one in force at the date of service.
• If you increase rent before 1 May to come into effect after 1 May, use Form 4. If you serve the notice on or after 1 May, use Form 4A. That form is not yet available to use, but you can see a draft Form 4A here.
• Rent review clauses will only work if the new rent comes into force before 1 May, but not after. Landlords will not be able to use rent review clauses to increase rent after 1 May.
• If the tenant challenges a new Form 4A rent increase at the First-tier Tribunal, the new rent will take effect after the tribunal’s decision, at a date the judge determines, and will not be backdated.
• There will be a £47 fee for tenants to challenge, which will probably put many off for small increases.
• You will be able to negotiate a lower rent after serving Form 4A, by addendum. That’s binding and prevents the tenant going to tribunal.

Also, don’t increase rent by “renewing” the tenancy after 1 May. There will be no fixed term periods after 1 May, so every existing fixed term will become periodic, and the only way to increase rent will be via the Section 13 process.

>> Related Post: How to increase rent using Section 13 (before and after 1 May)

4. I have a Student HMO. How does Ground 4A actually work?

Ground 4A is the student possession ground, and it’s the mechanism that is intended to keep the academic cycle working under the new regime.

First of all, it only applies to HMOs, ie where there are three or more sharers from two or more households. All must be full time students when the tenancy is entered into.

For existing student tenants (meaning they’ve entered into a tenancy agreement, even if it’s not signed), you need to serve the Ground 4A written statement by 31 May which puts them on notice you will want to rely on Ground 4A.

For new tenancies entered into on or after 1 May, serve this statement at the same time as you give them the tenancy agreement, or better still, include it in the tenancy agreement.

5. I’ve served a Section 21. Will it be valid?

It depends on the dates and it depends on whether the notice itself is valid, i.e. you have complied with the various landlord obligations – see How to serve a valid Section 21 notice.

The last time to serve a Section 21 notice is 30 April before 4:30pm. After that, Section 21 cannot be used. I wouldn’t leave it until the eleventh hour, to avoid the risk of it not having been validly served. If you’re thinking of serving one, use a specialist solicitor.

And any Section 21 notice you serve now must be enforceable by 31 July, meaning you need to have asked the court to issue a claim form for the possession order if the tenant hasn’t moved out by then.

If you serve a Section 21 notice, the assured shorthold tenancy will stay as assured shorthold tenancy, and not become an assured periodic tenancy on 1 May. If the notice lapses or is deemed by the court to be invalid, the tenancy will become an assured periodic tenancy.

If your Section 21 expires after 31 July or you don’t ask the court to issue a claim form by 31 July, there’s no runway to enforce it, and it will be invalid.

If the tenant moves out before the notice expires, you don’t need to apply for a possession order. That’s the usual outcome in most cases.

>> Related Post: How to serve a valid Section 21 notice

>> Related Post: When is the last date to serve a Section 21 notice?

6. Can I still accept rent in advance?

Existing tenancies as of 1 May

If you have an EXISTING tenancy, entered into before 1 May, any clauses that require rent to be paid in advance will still be valid from 1 May. “Entered into” means signed by the parties, even if the start date is later.

This is because Section 8 RRA, which introduces the rules on in-tenancy rent in advance provisions, explicitly states that the prohibition on rent in advance “does not apply to a tenancy entered into before the commencement date”, ie 1 May. 

New tenancies from 1 May

If you have a NEW tenancy, entered into on or after 1 May, you cannot accept or ask for any rent to be paid before the tenancy is signed, as Section 9 RRA states this will breach the Tenant Fees Act.

However, once the agreement is signed, tenants can pay the initial rent between signing and the start of the tenancy. The initial rent can only be up to one calendar month’s rent.

Once the tenancy starts, tenants can voluntarily pay rent in advance, but any term in a new tenancy from 1 May that requires rent to be paid in advance will be invalid, and unenforceable.

The rent in advance rules are among the many things I explain in detail in The Good Landlord Handbook.

>> Related Post: The rules banning rent in advance in Renters’ Rights Act