Your landlord has died and a rent increase has arrived: what now?
When a landlord dies, the tenancy does not die with them. It carries on, and so does the rent. But a rent increase that arrives after a death raises questions an ordinary Section 13 notice does not: who has the authority to serve it, who you should actually be paying, and whether the notice is even valid if the estate has not been sorted out yet. Get this wrong and you could pay the wrong person or accept an increase served by someone with no power to serve it. This walkthrough explains who can validly raise the rent after a landlord dies, who to pay in the meantime, how to check the notice, and what to write. England only, periodic assured tenancies.
Your landlord put the service charge up in the Section 13 notice: can they do that?
Plenty of Section 13 rent increase notices quietly do two jobs at once: they put the rent up, and they put the service charge up. Tenants assume both stand or fall together. They do not. A variable service charge, the kind that changes year to year to reflect actual costs, cannot legally be increased through a Section 13 notice at all. If your landlord has rolled a service charge rise into the rent increase, part of that notice may be unenforceable, and spotting it can change what you actually owe. This walkthrough explains how to tell which kind of service charge you have, what Section 13 can and cannot touch, how to challenge the part that does not belong, and what to write to your landlord. England only, periodic assured tenancies.
Reasonable adjustments and interpreters at a rent tribunal hearing: how to ask and what you can get
If a disability, a health condition, or a language barrier would make a rent tribunal hearing harder for you, the tribunal can adjust how it runs. You have to ask, and ask early, but the support is there: interpreters, documents in larger print or other formats, extra breaks, more time, a different hearing format, or help for a hearing or sight impairment. This walkthrough explains what reasonable adjustments the First-tier Tribunal can make for a rent challenge, how to request them, and how to ask for an interpreter, with a request template. England only, Section 13 rent challenges.
Can the tribunal set my rent higher than the landlord asked? The rule that changed on 1 May 2026
The single biggest reason tenants never challenge a rent increase is the fear it could backfire and leave them paying more than the landlord asked for. Under the old rules that was a real risk. Since 1 May 2026 it is not: the First-tier Tribunal can no longer set your rent above the figure your landlord proposed. This walkthrough explains exactly what changed, why the old deterrent existed, what the worst case is now, and how to check which rule applies to your notice. England only, Section 13 rent challenges.
The landlord served a fresh Section 13 after the first one was defective: what now?
Spotting a defect in a Section 13 rent increase notice is a win, but landlords often respond by simply serving a corrected one. This walkthrough explains whether a landlord can re-serve, what happens to the once-a-year limit and the notice period when they do, how a withdrawn notice differs from a defective one, and what a tenant should check on the second notice. England only, Section 13 rent challenges.
Your rent tribunal hearing is by video: how to join and prepare for a remote CVP hearing
More rent tribunal hearings now happen by video rather than in a hearing room, and the notice you get can be light on detail. This walkthrough explains how a remote First-tier Tribunal hearing works, how to join a CVP or Teams hearing, what to have ready on screen, how to ask for a reasonable adjustment or an in-person hearing, and what to do if your connection drops on the day. England only, Section 13 rent challenges.
Tenant 2-month notice to end an assured periodic tenancy: how to give notice the right way (the post-RRA tenant playbook)
From 1 May 2026, ending your tenancy as a renter in England gets a lot simpler — and a lot more in your favour. You no longer have to wait for a fixed term to expire. You don't need a break clause. You don't need a reason. You just need to give your landlord at least two months' notice in writing, a
Discrimination in lettings post-Renters' Rights Act: what tenants on benefits, students, and families with children can do if rejected
For more than two decades, three little letters have quietly closed doors on millions of UK renters: **DSS**. "No DSS." "No housing benefit." "Professional couples only." From 1 May 2026 — two days from now — those signs are illegal in England. The Renters' Rights Act 2025 gives tenants on benefits,
1 May 2026 day one: the tenant phone-photo-and-paperwork audit (the Renters' Rights Act morning playbook)
On Friday 1 May 2026, every assured shorthold tenancy in England quietly converts into an assured periodic tenancy. You don't have to sign anything. You don't have to ring your landlord. The Renters' Rights Act 2025 does the conversion for you the moment the clock ticks past midnight on 30 April. Fr
Pet request under the Renters' Rights Act: how to send the request and what 'reasonable' refusal really means
From 1 May 2026 you can request consent for a pet in writing. The landlord has 28 days to respond and cannot unreasonably refuse. What 'reasonable' means and what to do if refused.