The Renters’ Rights Bill Gains Royal Assent

Image Credit: Roger Harris via Flickr

The King has formally agreed for the Renters’ Rights Bill to be made into an Act of Parliament, officially making it law.

Rental reforms were a cornerstone of Labour’s manifesto in the 2024 election, and have been a policy priority for the party since their landslide victory. The Act delivers on Labour’s plans to, among other measures, end Section 21 no-fault evictions, end most fixed-terms contracts, and stop rental bidding wars by prohibiting landlords and agents from asking for, or accepting offers above the advertised rent. 

Whilst the Act is now officially law, the timeline for its enforcement will be revealed by the Government at a later date. The Housing Minister has, however, confirmed that tenants and landlords will be given ‘sufficient notice’ before the Act comes into force, according to NRLA. 

How will students be affected? 

Ground 4A in the Renters’ Rights Act outlines the specific rules for landlords to take back their property where the property is let to full-time students, in order to re-let to a new group of students the following academic year. 

Since there will no longer be fixed-term contracts for the academic year, tenancies will be rolling until ended by either party. As landlords will no longer be able to serve tenants with a Section 21 no-fault eviction notice, Ground 4A will be the means by which they can repossess their property in order to re-let to new students. 

Do students need to be worried about Ground 4A?

There are a few key conditions that a landlord must meet in order to be able to implement Ground 4A. Before the tenancy is entered into, the landlord must provide the tenants with a written notice of their intention to regain possession under the ground. Additionally, the landlord must give the tenants 4 months’ notice to recover possession. The date on which possession is sought must fall between June 1st and September 20th, in alignment with the end of the academic year. 

Ground 4A will also have an impact on the student flat-hunt process. Under the sixth-month advance limit, landlords won’t be able to lock-in new tenants more than six months before possession of the property will be needed. This means that landlords can’t ‘bank’ student tenants a year in advance if they intend on implementing Ground 4A for possession of their property.