Landlords feel unsupported after the Renters’ Rights Act

Landlords are reporting higher turnover, falling margins and concern over future costs one month after the Renters’ Rights Act took effect.

Rental services provider Housing Hand questioned 30 landlords 30 days after the legislation was implemented on 1 May 2026.

Of those, 83% said its effect on the rent market had been negative so far.

Just 3% described the impact as positive, while 13% said the Act had made no difference.

All of the respondents said they understood the new requirements but 83% felt the government was not supporting landlords.

Only 17% believed it was.

Tenant awareness was judged to be lower and 70% of those surveyed said their tenants did not understand the Act’s requirements, while 30% thought they did.

RRA brought change

Graham Hayward, the firm’s managing director, said: “The first month under the Renters’ Rights Act has brought significant change, and we understand that navigating this transition can feel uncertain for both tenants and accommodation providers.

“It is clear that many across the sector are still getting to grips with the practicalities of the Act.

“We are noticing a widespread lack of clarity regarding how these changes impact tenancy agreements.”

He added: “This is perhaps unsurprising given change is still taking place – the Information Sheet has been updated twice already this month.”

Mr Hayward urged landlords to regularly visit the government website for the latest updates.

What landlords said about the survey

Landlords and agents were also asked how they felt about operating in the sector.

One respondent said: “The act will be positive and negative, but change is difficult so initially it’s negative.

“The biggest initial problem for tenants is the two months’ notice.

“The narrative has been it is bad news for landlords no one has spoken about the bad news for tenants.”

A student HMO landlord said early tenant departures were already affecting expected income.

They said: “We have 20 student HMOs and we have already had about 10 students give notice so we will have no rent for at least 10 students in August.

“We also had a professional move into a professional HMO and serve notice within his first month.

“We do not like such fast turnover because it increases our work and also unsettles the other housemates.”

One agent reported little immediate disruption because its existing procedures were already close to the new tenancy rules, although it raised concerns about later reforms.

The agent said: “As an agent we feel relatively confident for the future.

“Many practices already in place at our agency were similarly aligned with the new rules applied (i.e. rent reviews via section 13 notices with short term ASTs left open at the end of terms with two-month notice periods and not on renewal) so there was little pain experienced and no radical changes to our operations as a result.

“We do have apprehension on the next phases however particularly with EPC requirements impacting maintenance costs.”

Another landlord said: “I’m sure the intention is to reduce the amount of non-compliant landlords. Those rogue landlords will continue. The tenants to scared to do anything.

“I now find I will increase my rents on a yearly basis and bring them into line with market rents. I will spend more money to protect rental income.”