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The Renters’ Rights Act 2026 came into force on 1 May 2026…
Key takeaways
I’ve lost count of the number of times someone has told me Buy-to-Let is dead. If I had a tenner for every “End of Days” headline about the UK property market over the past twenty years, I’d be writing this from a sun lounger in Ibiza rather than a desk in London.
But here we now have the latest “reform” that is set to affect the Buy-to-Let market, the Renters’ Rights Act has officially landed. After all the build-up, the warnings of doom, and the column inches predicting the collapse of the Private Rented Sector, the biggest shake-up to renting in England in a generation is now live. The headlines are doing what headlines do, going full apocalypse. A handful of landlords are running for the exits, but the doom-mongers are out in force, telling anyone who’ll listen that the PRS is finished and the government has finally throttled the golden goose.
It’s a load of old claptrap.
Yes, the rules have changed. Yes, this is the most significant rewrite of the rental sector since the 1988 Housing Act. But for the professional landlord, the one who treats this as a business, not a hobby, the Act isn’t a P45. It’s an opportunity to stand out.
Let me walk you through what’s actually happening, what it means for your mortgage, and why the smart money is staying very firmly in the game.
The Renters Rights Act 2026 is a top-to-bottom rewrite of how tenancies work in England. The aim is to give renters more security in a country where roughly one in five households now rents privately. That isn’t an unreasonable goal, but it does mean the old landlord playbook is in the bin.
Here are the headline changes every landlord needs to understand.
The “no-fault” eviction is dead. You can’t end a tenancy because you fancy a change, because the tenant complained about the damp, or because it’s a Tuesday. To take possession, you now need a valid Section 8 ground: you’re moving back in, you’re selling, the tenant is in serious arrears, or there’s been a genuine breach.
I know plenty of landlords are losing sleep over this. The fear is being “stuck” with a problem tenant. This is fair enough, but if you’re a professional landlord with a decent property and a sensible relationship with your tenant, when did you last actually serve a Section 21? For most of our Buy-to-Let clients, the answer is “never.”
The Assured Shorthold Tenancy as we knew it has been retired. From day one, every tenancy will be periodic, rolling, month by month. Tenants can give two months’ notice whenever they like.
On the surface this looks bad: no more guaranteed twelve-month income. But in a market this short of rental stock, if a tenant gives notice you’ll have ten more lined up before the door’s closed behind them. The “guarantee” of a fixed term was always a bit theoretical anyway; tenants who wanted out broke them regularly.
The auction-style “highest offer wins” stuff is over. You advertise a rent, that’s the rent. You can’t invite prospective tenants to outbid each other like Sotheby’s on a Tuesday afternoon.
Frankly, this should probably have happened years ago and leaves a much more transparent process in theory.
The Renters Rights Act has finally tackled a few of the rental sector’s open secrets.
Blanket “No Pets” policies are out. A tenant can request a pet, and you can only refuse on reasonable grounds. You can require pet insurance to cover damage to your floors and skirting boards. Side note from someone who’s seen thousands of rental relationships up close: pet-owning tenants are gold. They know how rare a pet-friendly let is and they often stay longer, they take care of the place, and they pay their rent on time. Take the dog!
Refusing tenants with children, or those receiving benefits, is now unlawful. Decisions have to be made on merit and affordability, not on a tick-box.
Two pieces of admin that matter more than they sound: every landlord must register on the new national Property Portal, and there’s now a mandatory Ombudsman scheme dealing with tenant complaints. If your compliance has been a bit “back of an envelope” up to now, those days are done. Gas certs, EPCs, deposit protection, Right to Rent checks, it’s time to get them all squared away.
I’ve spent recent weeks on the phone with the BTL teams at the major lenders and the mood is calm but careful.
Lenders are recalibrating, not retreating. The big question on their desks is whether periodic tenancies meaningfully change the risk profile. In other words: if a tenant can leave whenever they want, do void periods get longer in practice?
Expect a few tweaks rather than wholesale withdrawal. Some lenders will sharpen their affordability stress tests. Some will get pickier on property type or borrower experience. Some are reviewing their criteria around HMOs and student lets specifically. But the BTL market isn’t closing. There’s too much capital chasing too few homes, and lenders need yield. What you’ll notice is that lenders increasingly want to see professional landlords with proper plans.
Here’s my take, for what it’s worth.
The UK has been under-building homes for thirty-plus years. We have an ageing population, more single-person households than ever, and net migration that consistently outpaces new supply. People need somewhere to live. If they can’t buy, and with property prices where they are, plenty can’t, or simply don’t want to, they have to rent. That’s just arithmetic. And arithmetic doesn’t care about headlines.
What this legislation actually kills is the accidental landlord, and certainly the bad ones. Those with the leaky boiler, the dodgy gas cert, and an allergy to phone calls are going to find all this far too much like hard work. They’ll sell.
Who buys those properties? Professional landlords. The ones who treat tenants as customers, who maintain their stock, who run it like a business. The supply tightens further, quality rises, rents stay healthy. That isn’t a bad market for serious investors, in fact it may be a better one.
Everyone obsesses over monthly yield, void risk, and section-this-or-that. They forget what’s actually built wealth in UK property over the past five decades: capital appreciation. Over any sensible time horizon, ten, fifteen, twenty years, UK residential property has reliably gone up. If your numbers stack on rent, your costs are covered, and you can hold for a decade, the maths usually looks after itself.
A few practical moves if you want to be on the right side of this shift.
Professionalise your structure. If you’re still holding multiple properties in your personal name, it’s time for a proper conversation about a Limited Company (SPV) approach. It’s may be more tax-efficient, particularly given how mortgage interest relief now works for higher-rate taxpayers, and a growing number of lenders prefer it.
The first thing we always say to aspiring landlords is get independent tax advice.
Get the paperwork right. Property Portal registration, Ombudsman membership. EPCs, deposit protection, right to rent, etc, etc. The compliance bar has been raised.
Lengthen your time horizon. The next few months will be noisy. The next ten years are what matter. Don’t make portfolio decisions based on a fortnight of headlines.
Use a broker who actually knows BTL. This matters more now, not less. You need someone who knows which lenders are comfortable with periodic tenancies, which are pragmatic on pets, which work best for Ltd Co structures, and where the cheapest money sits for portfolio landlords. The high street is not the place to figure this out. The right broker will save you thousands and stop you taking the wrong product.
We’ve been through the Credit Crunch, Brexit, Covid, the Liz Truss mini budget, (remember that little episode?), and a fair few mortgage market wobbles in between. We’ve seen “BTL is dead” headlines after every single one, yet the market keeps adapting, and so too do the good landlords.
Right now we’re working with clients on three things: restructuring portfolios into more efficient ownership structures, reviewing remortgage options before fixed rates roll off, and getting them ready to take advantage when the “accidental” landlords list their properties this summer.
Is Buy-to-Let harder than it was in 2005? Without question. Is it dead? Not even close. It’s just grown up, and the people who treat it like a grown-up business are going to do very nicely indeed.
If the changes have your head spinning, or you want to know exactly what these new rules mean for your borrowing, give us a shout. We’re approachable, we know our stuff, and we make finance fun.
Is Buy-to-Let still worth it in 2026? Yes — for professional landlords with the right structure, the right property, and a sensible time horizon. Demand for rental property is still significantly outstripping supply, and capital appreciation over the long term remains the principal driver of returns.
Can landlords still evict tenants? Yes, but only with a valid Section 8 reason — selling the property, moving back in, serious rent arrears, or a genuine breach of the tenancy. Section 21 “no-fault” evictions have been abolished.
Will my Buy-to-Let mortgage still be available? Yes. Lenders are adjusting their criteria around periodic tenancies and stress tests, but the BTL market remains very much open. Expect more focus on experienced landlords and Limited Company structures.
Should I move my BTL portfolio into a Limited Company? Often, yes — particularly for higher-rate taxpayers and portfolio landlords. It’s a personal decision that depends on your tax position, holding period, and plans. Speak to a broker and a tax adviser.
Do I have to accept tenants with pets now? You can’t apply a blanket ban, but you can refuse on reasonable grounds. You’re entitled to require pet insurance covering damage.
Want more on what’s moving the property and mortgage market? Have a listen to the Coreco Couch Podcast, read our blogs, and get in touch with the team at Coreco whenever you want a straight answer about your options.
Andrew Montlake, better known as Monty, began his journey with an Hons degree in Economics & Politics before starting in the mortgage industry in February 1994. As a main founder of Coreco in 2009, he successfully grew the brand, marketing, and communications, and was made MD in 2019 focussing on the overall vision, strategy, and culture of the company. As Coreco’s media spokesperson, Andrew can often be seen or heard on TV and radio as well as regularly commenting in the national, local, and trade press. He is the author of this acclaimed Mortgage Blog and is well-known for his social media, podcasts, and public speaking. Andrew is now proud to serve as Chairman of the Association of Mortgage Intermediaries, (AMI) as a cheerleader for the Mortgage Industry as a whole and continues to work at the coal face, writing mortgage business and advising clients.
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