The confirmation of a 1 May 2026 start date for the Renters’ Rights Act marks a decisive shift in how the private rented sector will be regulated.

What many landlords have not yet grasped is that the legislative overhaul does not stop with tenancy reform. We are about to see a far more assertive enforcement landscape, driven by councils armed with stronger powers, bigger penalties and clearer duties.

Included is a Decent Homes Standard and the long-awaited and allegedly ‘upgraded’ Housing Health and Safety Rating System.

The government says it will offer a more transparent and efficient way of assessing hazards.

Much harder

What is clear is it will make it much harder for poor property conditions to slip through the cracks. Every landlord should be prepared for far closer scrutiny of the standard of their homes a draconian enforcement as councils monetise the new legislation.

From 1 May next year, councils will cease to have discretion as to enforcing housing standards laws.

Every council in England will be legally required to police these new rights. The first thing government did after Royal Assent was to issue guidance to councils on their new powers!

And boy, they now have a strengthened toolkit to do it. Fines will start at £7,000 for many breaches, but the ceiling rises to £40,000 where offences are repeated, ongoing or serious.

On top of that, tenants and councils will have strengthened access to rent repayment orders (RRO), for a wider range of offences and extended from 12 months’ rent to 24 months. So expect to see RRO’s starting at £24,000 and upwards.

New powers

What should concern landlords even more is the massive expansion of investigatory powers.

Councils will be able to demand information from landlords, agents, banks and contractors. They will be permitted to enter business premises and, in specific situations, homes to check compliance.

They will also have the authority to seize documents and computers if they ‘suspect’ wrongdoing. This represents a level of investigatory reach that many landlords have never experienced before.

Landlords should indeed be afraid.”

Powers in many cases greater than the police and frankly with little or no accountability. Landlords should indeed be afraid.

Penalties will also take on a new level of severity. Councils will be able to issue larger fines (which they get to keep for their revenue budgets), escalate sanctions for repeat offenders and use strengthened rent repayment orders to recover rent on behalf of themselves or DWP.

It is clear that habitual non-compliance will no longer be met with a slap on the wrist.”

Some councils even employ specialists to help tenants issue RROs against landlords to make sure landlords are penalised to the max. It is clear that habitual non-compliance will no longer be met with a slap on the wrist.

To prepare for these responsibilities, local housing authorities will receive a share of more than £18 million this year. With enhanced funding and clearer rules, we can expect enforcement activity to increase sharply.

My advice to landlords is simple: take this seriously and get ahead of it now. The margin for error is minimal, and councils will soon have more resources and the statutory duty to act quickly and decisively against landlords.

Many landlords this Christmas will be asking themselves whether the benefits outweigh the risks, and whether they want to put their livelihoods and pensions on the line to provide homes for others.

Speaking as a landlord, I’m out!

Phil Turtle (main picture) is a licensing expert at Landlord Licensing & Defence

More on the Renters’ Rights Act