Blog
Expert guides on tenant rights, rent increases, and the Section 13 process in England.
Right to Rent on the new periodic tenancy: the re-check trap and Ground 7B tenant defence (RRA, 2026)
The Renters' Rights Act 2025 did not amend the Immigration Act 2014 but it changed the tenancy architecture around it. Fixed-term renewals are largely gone. Tenancies just continue. The landlord's Right-to-Rent re-check obligation does not stop at the fixed term - it carries on perpetually. And Ground 7B (a no-right-to-rent Home Office notice) is a mandatory 2-week ground that survived the RRA reforms unchanged. This walkthrough covers the new re-check reality, what documents the landlord can and cannot ask for (the data-minimisation point), the three failure patterns appearing in early-RRA cases, the Subject Access Request route to evidence whether a Home Office notice actually exists, and the procedural letter that gets a defective Ground 7B withdrawn.
The agent is sitting on your holding deposit: the 7-day rule tenant walkthrough (2026)
A holding deposit is the small payment - capped at one week's rent - that a renter hands over to a letting agent to take a property off the market while referencing runs. In a clean transaction it rolls into the first month's rent. In a messy one, the deal falls through and the agent goes quiet. This walkthrough covers the two clocks (the 15-day deadline for agreement and the 7-day refund clock), the four lawful retention categories under the Tenant Fees Act 2019, the three patterns that drive most unlawful retentions, the chase letter template, and the three escalation routes (Trading Standards, small claims, redress scheme).
An N5 possession claim has landed: the tenant walkthrough through the 14-day defence window (RRA, 2026)
An N5 dropping through the letterbox is not an eviction - it is the start of a legal process the tenant gets to take part in. The court has sent the tenant a copy because the tenant has a right to be heard. This walkthrough covers the 14-day defence clock from the date of service, how to read the N5 for the substantive ground and the procedural validity strands, the three failure patterns appearing most often in early-RRA cases (Ground 1A inside the 12-month bar, Ground 8 arrears bundled with a defective Form 4A, missing deposit protection), how to fill in the N11R defence form section by section, the witness-statement skeleton, and what to bring to the hearing.
Living in an EPC F or G property: the tenant enforcement walkthrough (MEES + RRA, 2026)
An EPC of F or G has been an unlawful let since 2020. Maximum penalty is now GBP 30,000 per breach. The tenant walkthrough - EPC register check, landlord letter, and the council enforcement route.
RRO for an unlicensed HMO under the new 24-month window: the tenant walkthrough (RRA, 2026)
The Renters' Rights Act 2025 doubled the rent repayment order maximum from 12 to 24 months. The tenant walkthrough on how to claim, with the evidence pack and the Form RRO1 process.
Your guarantor was released on 1 May 2026: the tenant walkthrough (RRA, 2026)
Most tenancy guarantors signed before 1 May 2026 were quietly released on that date. Most renters and most guarantors do not know. The tenant walkthrough that puts a stop to chasing letters.
Form 4A served during the 12-month rent-increase freeze: the tenant procedural-challenge walkthrough (RRA, May 2026)
Under the Renters' Rights Act 2025 a landlord cannot increase rent in the first 12 months of a new assured tenancy, and cannot increase rent more than once in any 12-month period thereafter. A Form 4A served inside that freeze window is invalid on its face - no need to involve the First-tier Tribunal, no need to argue market rent. A single procedural-challenge letter ends it. This walkthrough covers the 12-month rule, how to spot the freeze breach in three checks, and the one-letter response template.
Council tax under the Renters' Rights Act periodic-by-default regime: when does the bill move? The tenant walkthrough (May 2026)
Historically, a tenant on a statutory periodic tenancy who moved out before the notice end date stopped being liable for council tax the day they vacated - the empty-property charge fell on the landlord. The Renters' Rights Act 2025 has reversed that. Tenants are now liable for council tax until the end of the notice period they served, even if they leave the property earlier. This walkthrough covers the new rule, the timing maths, the leave-early scenario that catches tenants out, and how to evidence the vacate date if the council pushes back.
Successor tenancy after the death of a joint tenant under the Renters' Rights Act 2025: the surviving tenant's walkthrough (May 2026)
When a joint tenant dies, the law of survivorship takes over - the surviving joint tenant becomes the sole tenant automatically. No new tenancy, no Form 6A, no eviction. But landlords and letting agents routinely test this rule, asking the surviving tenant to "sign a new agreement" or hinting that they might need to leave. This walkthrough covers the survivorship rule, the four common landlord-dispute scenarios under the new Renters' Rights Act regime, and the two short letters that close those scenarios down.
Asking your landlord to take in a lodger or sub-let under the Renters' Rights Act: the tenant consent request walkthrough (RRA Day 9, May 2026)
A spare room earns nothing while it sits empty. A friend needs somewhere for three months. A second income would take pressure off a tight budget. Each of these is a reason a tenant might want to take in a lodger or arrange a short sub-let - and each requires, in most cases, the landlord's consent. The Renters' Rights Act 2025 has tightened the consent regime in some places (pets, most visibly) and left the lodger / sub-let rules broadly unchanged - but the escalation routes if a landlord behaves unreasonably are now significantly stronger. This walkthrough covers the two scenarios precisely, the clean consent-request letters (lodger and sub-let), what counts as reasonable refusal under the established framework, and the four-step escalation path to the Property Redress Scheme.