The Renters' Rights Act came into force this morning. For lettings agencies across England, the private rented sector has changed overnight in ways that will define the next decade of the industry. This is not legislation to read later. The changes are live, the compliance deadlines are immediate and your landlord clients are looking to you for answers.

Here is what has changed, what you need to do and how to position your agency on the right side of it.

What has changed today

The scale of reform that came into force on 1 May 2026 is significant. Understanding each element clearly is the starting point for everything else.

Section 21 is abolished. No further no-fault eviction notices can be served from today. Landlords must now rely on Section 8 grounds for possession from the government's approved list. For sales and family occupation, landlords must give at least four months' notice and cannot serve that notice within the first 12 months of a tenancy.

Fixed term tenancies are gone. Every existing Assured Shorthold Tenancy automatically converted to an Assured Periodic Tenancy today. All new tenancies from this point must also be periodic. Tenants can end a tenancy at any time with two months' notice.

Rent increases are now limited to once a year via a formal Section 13 notice and must reflect local market rates. Any existing contractual rent review clauses in tenancy agreements cannot be used for new rent increases. Rent in advance is capped at one month. Bidding wars between tenants are banned. And landlords can no longer refuse tenants on the basis of children or benefits receipt.

Your most urgent compliance obligation — the Information Sheet

This is the single most time-sensitive action for every lettings agency in England today.

The government has published the official Renters' Rights Act Information Sheet 2026, which landlords and agents must provide to all existing tenants with written tenancy agreements by 31 May 2026. The deadline is firm and the consequences of missing it are significant — failure to comply risks a fine of up to £7,000 per tenancy.

The Information Sheet must not be changed or altered in any way, including adding your branding. The PDF must be downloaded from the GOV.UK website and sent as an attachment — not as a link — either by post, by hand or as a PDF attachment to an email or text message. Where a landlord has a letting agent managing the property on their behalf, the agent must also provide the Information Sheet to the tenant, even if the landlord has already done so.

For agencies managing large portfolios, the volume of service required is substantial. Start today and keep records of every service in case of future dispute.

What the market is telling us

The broader context matters for how agencies position themselves in the weeks and months ahead.

According to lettings platform Goodlord, 72% of landlords are currently in a holding pattern — neither buying nor selling — as they wait to see what the real-world implications of the Act look like in practice. A further 24% are currently selling or trying to sell part or all of their portfolio.

Research from LegalforLandlords shows that landlord confidence is fragile. 63% of landlords believe the reforms will increase the level of risk associated with letting property, with 43% citing the abolition of Section 21 as their biggest single concern. Half of all landlords surveyed say they plan to tighten tenant vetting processes as a direct result of the Act.

Meanwhile, research from proptech firm Iamproperty indicates that letting agents expect a significant reduction in buy-to-let investors this year, forcing a shift away from landlord-led portfolio growth towards needs-based movers. Agencies are reviewing staffing structures and diversifying their income streams in response.

This is the environment your landlord clients are operating in today. How your agency communicates in the next 30 days will determine whether nervous landlords stay with you or use this moment of disruption to reconsider their arrangements.

Six practical steps for your lettings business today

1. Contact every landlord client this week. Do not wait for them to call you. A clear, confident communication explaining what has changed, what it means for their tenancies and what you are doing to ensure compliance is the most valuable thing you can deliver right now. Landlords who feel informed and supported stay. Those who feel confused and uncontacted start looking elsewhere.

2. Serve the Information Sheet immediately. Download the official PDF from GOV.UK and begin distributing it to all tenants on existing written tenancy agreements today. Do not send a link. Send the PDF as an attachment. Keep records of every service. The deadline is 31 May 2026 and the fine for non-compliance is up to £7,000. Do not leave this until the end of the month.

3. Audit your tenancy documentation today. Fixed term ASTs can no longer be offered. New tenancy agreements must be Assured Periodic Tenancies and must include the mandatory Written Statement of Terms. Review all documentation and processes to ensure full compliance from today. If you are unsure whether your standard documents are compliant, take legal advice immediately.

4. Review your possession and eviction processes. Section 21 is gone. Ensure your team understands the new Section 8 grounds, the updated notice periods and the circumstances in which each ground applies. The new prescribed Section 8 notice forms must be used from today. Using the wrong form will invalidate a notice and expose your landlord clients to significant delay and cost.

5. Update your referencing and application processes. The ban on discrimination against tenants with children or those in receipt of benefits is now law. Your application processes, referencing criteria and any instructions given to staff or third-party referencing providers must reflect this immediately. The risk of a discrimination complaint is real and your documentation needs to demonstrate compliance.

6. Prepare your landlord retention strategy. Research shows that 24% of landlords are considering exiting the market altogether and a further 13% intend to reduce the size of their portfolio. The agencies that retain nervous landlords will be those that demonstrate expertise, communicate proactively and make compliance feel manageable rather than overwhelming. Now is the time to position your lettings management service not as a cost, but as a necessity.

What best practice looks like right now

The agencies that entered today best prepared are those that treated the Renters' Rights Act as a communications challenge as much as a compliance one — and started early.

Foxtons created a dedicated Renters' Rights Act resource for landlords, with senior management publishing video guidance on the key changes and how the business had prepared. Savills launched a dedicated RRA newsletter delivering updates, expert insights and practical guidance to landlord clients on an ongoing basis. Knight Frank published a comprehensive landlord guide to the Act, positioning its lettings team as the expert support landlords needed through the transition.

Across the sector, the best-prepared agencies have gone further still — launching comprehensive landlord and tenant communications programmes, producing dedicated Renters' Rights Act guides and booklets, delivering internal training across their teams and arranging in-person landlord Q&A sessions with senior staff. That level of preparation is the benchmark. It keeps landlords informed, builds trust and makes the case for professional management more powerfully than any sales conversation.

At McCooke Group, we have been working closely with lettings agency clients over recent months to develop exactly this kind of communications infrastructure — producing landlord guides, tenant-facing materials, internal briefing documents, staff training content and helping to plan and promote in-person landlord events. The agencies that had communications programmes in place before today are the ones whose landlord clients feel informed and supported rather than anxious and uncertain.

The opportunity in the change

It would be easy to frame today's changes as bad news for the lettings sector. That would be a mistake.

For professional, well-run lettings agencies, this legislation is an opportunity. The complexity of the new regime makes the case for managed lettings more compellingly than any marketing campaign could. Self-managing landlords now face a significantly more demanding compliance environment. The agencies that communicate clearly, manage compliantly and demonstrate genuine expertise will emerge from this period with stronger landlord relationships and more consolidated portfolios.

The agencies adapting most effectively are those moving away from volume lettings towards a more service-led proposition — one that rewards expertise, communication and compliance over simple transaction throughput. That shift favours professional agencies who invest in their client relationships and their communications.

What comes next

Today is phase one. Later in 2026 a new private rented sector ombudsman will launch, alongside a landlord database that tenants will be able to search freely. In the years ahead, EPC requirements will tighten significantly and a new Decent Homes Standard will be introduced for the private rented sector.

The direction of travel is clear. The private rented sector is becoming more regulated, more transparent and more demanding of the professionals who operate within it. The agencies that invest in their compliance, their communications and their client relationships now will be well placed for every phase that follows.

McCooke Group is a specialist property PR and communications consultancy working with estate agents, developers and investment firms across the UK. We have been supporting lettings agency clients through the Renters' Rights Act transition — producing landlord guides, tenant communications, staff training materials and event support. If you would like help building your own communications programme around the Act, get in touch at info@mccookegroup.com