Mary Foster, Senior Surveyor at StephensonsRural, shares an update on what’s in the Renters’ Rights Bill and what’s likely to happen next

The Renters’ Rights Bill 2025 is moving through Parliament and expected to be passed later this year. This important piece of legislation builds on the earlier Renters (Reform) Bill and aims to update the process of renting in England, from abolishing Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions to establishing new rules on rent increases and tenancy reform.

As many anticipated, the Renters’ Rights Bill is very similar to its predecessor, the Renters (Reform) Bill. While a few changes have been made, no non-Government amendments have been accepted yet in its current form.

The Bill is currently going through the report stage in the House of Lords in preparation for its third reading. A finalised version of the Bill will then need approval from both Houses of Parliament before being put forward for Royal Assent. This is likely to be before summer recess.

Here’s an overview of the key provisions of the Bill, what’s potentially changing and what landlords and tenants should watch for.

Key features:

• Tenancy reform
• A Private Rented Sector (PRS) database and PRS ombudsman
• Repossession changes
• Decent homes standard and Awaab’s Law (both designed to improve the quality and safety of rental housing)
• Rent
• Rental bidding
• Pets
• Increased penalties and enforcement
• Anti-discrimination
• Court reform

Tenancy reform

• Section 21 (‘no fault’ eviction) notices will be abolished
• No more fixed term tenancies – it will become an offence to create one
• No more Assured Shorthold Tenancies (ASTs) – all tenancies will become monthly periodic and fully assured
• Tenancies will roll indefinitely until:
  • Tenant gives two months’ notice (at any stage) to end at the end of a rent period; or
  • Landlord serves notice under Section 8 on one or more grounds
• Terms of the tenancy must be agreed in writing before the tenancy starts – there will be a penalty for failure to have a tenancy agreement in writing

Assured Agricultural Occupancies (AAOs)

AAOs will continue to exist, but with the move away from ASTs, Form 9 will no longer be relevant. An equivalent ‘opt out’ will be included to ensure that agricultural workers can still be housed without lifetime security of tenure.

Schedule 6, paragraph 9, confirms that existing opted-out AAOs will continue to be treated as opted out after the new law takes effect.

The Part 1 changes will not affect:

• Tenancies of more than 21 years
• Non-Housing Act 1988 tenancies, such as:
  • Company Lets
  • Rent (Agriculture) Act 1976 Tenancies
  • Rent Act 1977 Tenancies
  • Service Occupancy Agreements (where accommodation is provided as part of a job)
  • Other tenancies excluded by Schedule 1 Housing Act 1988

Rent (Agriculture) Act and Rent Act tenancies are included in the PRS database and Ombudsman requirements.

PRS Database

• Only applicable to Assured or Rent Act tenancies
• Landlords and properties will need to be registered on the Private Rented Sector Database
• A ban on marketing property without registration will be introduced
• Civil and other penalties for not joining will include:
  • £7,000 fine rising to £40,000 for repeat or ongoing offences
  • ‘Ban on Possession’ Orders
  • Rent Repayment Orders (RRO) – these have been doubled in size to a maximum of 24 months’ rent that tenants and enforcement teams can keep meaning they have a financial incentive
• Rogue Landlord database and banning orders to be included on the system. The Country Land and Business Association (CLA) is calling for a similar ‘Rogue Tenant’ database to be created

Landlord Redress Scheme – Ombudsman

• Only applicable to Assured or Rent Act tenancies
• Compulsory to join (before marketing the property) – subject to Civil penalties of £7,000 rising to £40,000 for repeat/ongoing offences, Tenants can apply for Rent Repayment Orders (RRO) and/or Ban on Possession orders
• There will be a ‘small annual’ fee that will likely be per PRS property, although we await more detail on this
• Extensive powers  including powers to compel Landlords to issues an apology, provide information, take remedial action, and/or pay compensation

Rent

• All letting offers and adverts must specify the rent in the advert
• No offer above the specified amount can be invited or accepted
• No lump sum rent in advance – just first month’s rent once entered into a tenancy
• Only applicable to Assured Tenancies
• Rent must be charged monthly or for each 28 days
• Rent can only be increased using S.13 notice meaning annually and to market level but there will be no rent review clause in the tenancy agreement
• The notice period for rent reviews have been increased from one month to two months
• Tenants can appeal reviews to Tribunal, for free, for determination but determination cannot increase rent - the Tribunal sets the rent to be effective from the decision date
• Current Tribunal hearings are taking months, so considerable delays are anticipated after the changes

Commencement and transition

• There won’t be a staggered approach meaning Section 21 will end for all tenancies at the same time
• All existing tenancies and new tenancies will become/be fully assured from the commencement date
• Other parts of the Bill will come into force when they are ready
• The implementation timeline is not yet confirmed, but changes may come into effect before the end of 2025

If you would like to learn more about how these reforms might affect you or your property, get in touch with the StephensonsRural team for expert advice and practical support.