Ground 4A or sign early? Student landlords have a choice to make

For years, student landlords have competed to secure next year’s tenants early.

In some university towns, properties for the following September are being advertised before Christmas. A good group views a house, likes it and wants to sign. The landlord is equally happy to get next year’s letting secured.

The Renters’ Rights Act creates a new decision for landlords in that position.

If a student HMO landlord wants to use Ground 4A to recover possession for the next student year, one of the conditions is that the tenancy must be entered into no more than six months before the students are entitled to move in.

But that does not mean landlords have to stop marketing their properties early.

They can advertise, conduct viewings and find prospective tenants as early as they wish. The decision comes when the students say: “We want the house. Can we sign?”

Suppose a landlord has a property available from September 2027 and finds an excellent group in November 2026. One option is to sign them up.

The landlord has secured the following year’s tenants; the students know where they will be living and the property is effectively taken out of the market.

But because the tenancy has been entered into more than six months before the students are entitled to possession, the landlord will normally have given up the ability to use Ground 4A at the end of that tenancy.

That may be a risk the landlord is prepared to take.

In a competitive student market, signing early could give that landlord an advantage over someone who wants to preserve Ground 4A and therefore isn’t prepared to enter into the tenancy until later.

Alternatively, the landlord can market just as early but wait until the tenancy falls within the six-month window before entering into it.

That preserves the possibility of using Ground 4A, provided all its other requirements are met.

But there is a commercial risk on that side too.

Will a group who find the house they want in November be prepared to wait several months before entering into the tenancy? Or will they choose another property where the landlord is prepared to sign them up immediately?

That is the real decision Ground 4A creates.

It isn’t “Can I market my property early?”

You can.

It is whether the advantage of securing a good student group early is worth giving up Ground 4A, or whether retaining Ground 4A is sufficiently important to justify waiting before entering into the tenancy.

The answer may be different from one university town to another. It may even be different between properties in the same portfolio.

What matters is that landlords make the choice deliberately. If you normally sign next year’s students seven, eight or nine months before they move in, you don’t necessarily have to stop.

But from 2027, you need to understand what you may be giving up by doing it.

Peter Littlewood has worked with landlords for many years through iHowz Landlord Association and now delivers landlord and agent training through B-Informed, including on the Renters’ Rights Act, student lettings and HMO management.